Painted bat (Kerivoula picta) roosting in dried banana leaves: ultrasonic frequency sweeps?
What are the micro-habitat leaf-curl preferences and broadband FM echolocation calls of the rare bright orange Painted Bat in Southern Province home gardens?
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3 Answers from travellers
The Painted Bat (Kerivoula picta) is one of the world’s most distinctive microbats, displaying bright fiery-orange fur with contrasting black and orange wing membranes. Unlike cave-dwelling species, it roosts in small foliage pockets: suspended dead, curled banana leaves (Musa), weaver bird nests, or dry thatch eaves in village home gardens. Because it forages in dense, cluttered foliage, its echolocation consists of broadband frequency-modulated (FM) downward sweeps spanning 155 kHz down to 80 kHz with very short pulse durations (under 1.5ms), allowing it to resolve individual spider webs and moths among leaves.
Tidying village gardens by pruning dead, brown banana leaves destroys their roosting shelters; preserving hanging dry fronds sustains local populations.
Their orange coloration provides camouflage among dry banana foliage and dead leaves, mimicking withered plant matter to avoid day-hunting crows.
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