Madagascan rousette  (Rousettus madagascariensis)

Description

The Madagascan rousette is the smallest of Madagascar’s three endemic fruit bats (3). The body is greyish-brown on the upperparts, with reddish-brown tinges, and paler grey-brown on the underparts. The fur is quite long and dense, though shorter on the neck, throat and shoulders, and the wings are relatively broad (2). Like other fruit bats, the face is rather dog-like, with a pointed muzzle, large eyes, and fairly conspicuous, widely separated ears (2) (4). Although most fruit bats rely on sight and smell as their main senses, some members of the genus Rousettus also use a rudimentary form of echolocation, producing high-pitched clicks with the tongue to help detect obstacles in their path. The association of the Madagascan rousette with cave roost sites suggests that this species is also likely to possess this ability (2) (4) (5).

left