Musonycteris harrisoni
banana bat

Musonycteris harrisoni is endemic to the Pacific coast of Mexico. It is restricted to west of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. This species has been found in the Mexican states of Colima, Guerrero, Jalisco, Mexico, and Morelos. The maximum altitude at which M. harrisoni has been found is 1,700m (Tellez and Ortega 1999).

Banana bats seem to be restricted to arid thorn and tropical deciduous forest along the coast and in the Balsas River Basin. These habitats have a remarkably dry season from November to May and a marked summer rainy season from July to October. During the dry season the majority of trees lose their leaves. These bats have been captured in banana groves and found roosting in culverts and caves (Tellez and Ortega 1999).

Banana bats are medium sized bats with an extremely long rostrum – averaging over one half of the greatest length of the skull (Tellez and Ortega 1999). The rostrum is the longest of any bat in relation to its width (Koopman 1981). One tongue measured 76 mm from the “gape of the jaw to the outstretched tip”. The ears are small and rounded. The uropatagium is complete and encloses a relatively short tail. The general color of the species is grayish-brown. Cheek teeth are small and show a reduction of the lingual elements, which is consistent with the nectarivorous lifestyle of these bats. The tongue lacks lateral grooves (Tellez and Ortega 1999). The tongue has a long, conical ridge of papillae. This adds to the surface area of the tongue and aides in nectar collection (Howell and Hodgkin 1976). The individual hairs of banana bats show highly divergent and divaricate scale placement – they have a “spiny” appearance. This appears to be important for gathering pollen on the face and neck of the bat (Howell and Hodgkin 1976).

Head and body length is 70 to 79 mm, tail length is 8 to 12 mm, and forearm length is 41 to 43 mm.

There is no information available on lifespan in this species.

This bat species has been poorly studied, little information on behavior is available. They are nocturnal and roost in small groups. They may have to undertake small-scale seasonal migrations in order to find flowering plants. They do not hibernate.

Musonycteris harrisoni are nectarivorous. The first M. harrisoni was found in a banana grove where it was feeding on pollen, nectar, and insects found in the banana flowers (Tellez and Ortega 1999). Pollen is the only reliable source of protein in the bat’s diet. They consume the pollen during grooming. They do not eat the flower’s anther or consume the pollen directly off the anthers (Howell and Hodgkin 1976). Insects are incidentally consumed with nectar.

Trumpet-nosed bats do not hibernate. Because of this, they need to feed on flowers year round. Therefore, it seems unlikely that these bats are rigid specialists for a certain type of flower (Koopman 1981).

As with other bats, banana bats escape predation by roosting in safe places during the day. At dusk and during the night they are at risk of falling prey to falcons, hawks, and owls. Common predators of bats in roosts are snakes, raccoons, ringtails, and small cats.

Banana bats are important pollinators of plant species throughout their range.

There are no negative effects of these bats on humans.

Trumpet-nosed bats are important pollinators of bananas and other species of plants.

The Mexican Ministry of Ecology considers banana bats a “treatment species” and they are considered vulnerable by the IUCN. These bats are generally rare (Tellez and Ortega 1999).

The word “Musonycteris” comes from the Arabic word for banana (musa) and the Greek word for bat (nycteris). The species is named for Ed N. Harrison, who supported the Mexican fieldwork of W.J. Schladach, one of the first to describe the bat (Tellez and Ortega 1999).