Puerto Rican Long-nosed Bat
Encyclopedia
The Puerto Rican Long-Nosed Bat (Monophyllus frater) is an extinct species of bat
, of the genus
Monophyllus
. This species of bat was never observed by European explorers, although the species was thought to have died out in the colonial era, due to indigenous artifacts indicating survival up to that time. It is theorized that the Puerto Rican Long-Nosed Bat population was pushed towards extinction by hurricanes in the region, which caused an immense loss of their habitat. A fossil specimen is currently on display in London.
Bat
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...
, of the genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Monophyllus
Monophyllus
Monophyllus is a genus of bat in the family Phyllostomidae.It contains the following species:* Insular Single Leaf Bat * Leach's Single Leaf Bat...
. This species of bat was never observed by European explorers, although the species was thought to have died out in the colonial era, due to indigenous artifacts indicating survival up to that time. It is theorized that the Puerto Rican Long-Nosed Bat population was pushed towards extinction by hurricanes in the region, which caused an immense loss of their habitat. A fossil specimen is currently on display in London.