Malagasy yellow bat

This article is about the bat species found in Madagascar. For the bat species found in North America, see western yellow bat.

The Malagasy yellow bat (Scotophilus tandrefana), sometimes known as the western yellow bat, is a species of vesper bat endemic to Madagascar.^[2]

Malagasy yellow bat
Conservation status
Data Deficient  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Chiroptera
Family:	Vespertilionidae
Genus:	Scotophilus
Species:	S. tandrefana
Binomial name
Scotophilus tandrefana Goodman, Jenkins & Ratrimomanarivo, 2005
Range map

Taxonomy and etymology

It was described as a new species in 2005. The holotype was collected in 2003 just outside the Tsingy de Bemaraha Strict Nature Reserve in Madagascar. Its species name "tandrefana" is Malagasy for "from the west".^[3]

Description

It has a forearm length of approximately 47 mm (1.9 in), a tail length of 46 mm (1.8 in), and an ear length of 13 mm (0.51 in). The holotype weighed 14.2 g (0.50 oz). The fur of its back is dark brown, while its belly fur is a medium shade of brown.^[3] It uses echolocation to navigate and find prey: it utilizes steep frequency-modulated echolocation (FM) as well as that of a quasi-constant frequency (QCF). Its echolocation reaches maximum energy around 48.2 kHz. Minimum frequency is 42.2 kHz, while maximum frequency is 91.2 kHz.^[4]

Conservation

As of 2019, it is listed as a data deficient species by the IUCN.^[1]