Lophostoma carrikeri (Allen, 1910) (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae): first confirmed records in Ecuador

Herein we confirm the occurrence of Lophostoma carrikeri in Ecuador. One adult female was collected in Orellana province on 17 September 2012 at Boanamo, Waorani Ethnic Reserve, and another on 5 May 2013 at Yasuni Research Station, Yasuni National Park. These records extend the distributional range of the species about 570 km northwest of the nearest previously known record in Jenaro Herrera, Loreto, Peru. Both Ecuadorian localities are characterized by well-conserved primary Terra Firme rainforest. Morphological characters of the specimens presented here broaden the known intraspecific variation in this taxon, including uniformly dark ears without white margins, undeveloped sagittal crests, and smaller forearm size than previously reported. In addition, information on ectoparasites for this species in Ecuador is provided.

Lophostoma carrikeri (Allen, 1910) (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae): First confirmed records in Ecuador Rex et al. (2008) were not clear as to the dispositional status of these specimens, and it is possible that they were released in situ after their identification (Christian C. Voigt, pers. comm.), making difficult the confirmation of L. carrikeri in Ecuador.Confirmation is further complicated due to the existence two Lophostoma species with external characteristics similar to L. carrikeri (i.e.white venter, overlapping measurements, etc.): L. kalkoae known only from its type locality in Panama and L. yasuni also known only from its type locality in eastern Ecuador.
Herein we report the first confirmed records of L. carrikeri, represented by museum voucher specimens deposited at the Mammalogy Division of Museo de Zoología at the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador (QCAZ).
The first specimen is an adult lactating female (Figure 1) identified with catalogue number QCAZ 13578, collected on 17 September 2012 in Boanamo, Waorani Ethnic Reserve, near the Yasuni National Park, Orellana province, Ecuador (01°14′50″ S, 76°22′30″ W, 230 m; Figure 2).External measurements (in mm) of the specimen are as follows: Total length, 86.4;tail length,16;hindfoot length,12.2;tibia length,20.1;ear length,24.4;forearm length,42.8;calcar length,13.3;metacarpal III length,34.1;metacarpal IV length,36.0;metacarpal V length,37.9;and a mass of 17 g.Craniodental measurements (in mm) are provided in Table 1.Sampling effort consisted of 12 effective netnights, employing 10 nets that were opened for 4 hours per night.During fieldwork, 160 bats were captured, representing five families, 22 genera, and 30 species.The only individual of L. carrikeri was captured in a groundlevel mist net along the Mono Araña trail in primary Terra Firme rainforest.The vegetation surrounding Boanamo consists of primary tropical rainforest with an understory of mature woody and herbaceous vegetation.The capture site was near a small stream.Both specimens exhibit entirely white furred underparts, except on chin and sides of the abdomen.Flanks, shoulders, and anal region have a pale grayishbrown pelage.Head and dorsal fur matches the description of the holotype as dark brown dorsally with tricolored hairs (pale at the base, grey in the middle, with whitish tips).Ears are uniformly dark, sparsely haired and without white margins; this feature is consistent with the description of the first record of L. carrikeri in the Cerrado of central Brazil (Zortéa et al. 2009).The proximal third dorsal surface of the forearm is hairy.Both specimens had an elongated clitoris and swollen labia (see Velazco and Gardner 2012).
Skulls show slender rostra and are constricted postorbitally; sagittal crests are not developed as were reported for other females of this species (Allen 1910;McCarthy et al. 1992).Lateral development of the mastoid region is moderate, intermediate between L. brasiliense and the other species (Fonseca and Pinto 2004;Velazco and Gardner 2012).Basisphenoid pits are well developed, divided by a visible but narrow septum.Upper toothrow is curved outward in QCAZ 13578 but not so in QCAZ 13994 (Fonseca and Pinto [2004] reported an outward curvature as a distinctive feature of L. yasuni).In both cases, the lingual cingulum of the upper canine has a weak indentation.
In October 2004, Rex et al. (2008) identified two captures in situ as L. carrikeri, one in TBS and one in BOM.In April 2005, another individual identified as L. carrikeri was captured in BOM.At that time, L. carrikeri was the only known white-bellied Lophostoma likely to occur in those sites.However, in December 2004, a new white-bellied species, L. yasuni, was described from Yasuni National Park (Fonseca and Pinto 2004).Although their project was primarily ecological in scope, Rex et al. (2008) did not take into account the possibility that two whitebellied Lophostoma may have existed at their study sites, and particularly at TBS given its proximity to the type locality of L. yasuni.It is important to emphasize that the confirmation of this species in Ecuador is based on the analysis of voucher specimens collected and deposited in an accredited scientific collection.Specimens in natural history museums allow members of the scientific community to test, refute, or confirm original information by the examination of physical specimens (Allmon 1994).Records from Rex et al. (2008) must be considered anecdotal because no vouchers were deposited at a natural history museum, and misidentification of bat specimens in the field is not uncommon.
Lophostoma carrikeri was included in the Ecuadorian mammal fauna by Albuja (2011), based on the records of Rex et al. (2008).Tirira (2012) was more cautious, stating that its inclusion in the Ecuadorian fauna should be provisional until the identity of captures could be confirmed.In the most recent revision of the genus, Velazco and Gardner (2012) did not include the records mentioned by Rex et al. (2008), since there were no specimens to confirm the record.
Variation in some measurements and skull characters from both specimens, particularly smaller forearm size in QCAZ 13578 (Boanamo) and upper toothrow shape in QCAZ 13994 (Yasuni Research Station), suggests that it is necessary to review the validity of the diagnostic characters of L. yasuni: forearm shorter than 44 mm, greatest length of skull 25.5 mm or more (Velazco and Gardner 2012), and upper toothrow curved outward (Fonseca and Pinto 2004).It would also be useful to procure a series of L. yasuni specimens to better understand morphological variation within the species, currently known from a single individual.Molecular analysis of the white-bellied roundeared bats of Ecuador is necessary to provide a complete set of data to clarify and identify their phylogenetic relationships.
Ectoparasitic arthropods were collected from QCAZ 13994.They comprised three genera and species of bat flies (Diptera: Streblidae): 3 males and 1 female Stizostrebla longirostris Jobling, 1939; 1 male Pseudostrebla sparsisetis Wenzel, 1976; and 12 males and 10 females Mastoptera sp.(minuta complex sensu Wenzel, 1976).Mastoptera spp.minuta complex comprise several cryptic species that parasitize a variety of species of Phyllostomus and Lophostoma.Stizostrebla longirostris is a rare species known from 22 specimens from Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Venezuela, and Ecuador.This is the first report of this genus and species from Ecuador.Pseudostrebla sparsisetis is also rare, known from 11 specimens from Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador.This is the first report of this species from Ecuador.Stizostrebla longirostris and Pseudostrebla sparsisetis are exclusive parasites of Lophostoma carrikeri.

Figure 2 .
Figure 2. Extended distributional range of Lophostoma carrikeri.Triangles represent all reported localities for the species (Velazco and Gardner 2012).White dots correspond to new records herein reported.Black dots correspond to unconfirmed records reported by Rex et al. (2008).

Table 1 .
Velazco and Gardner (2012)of Lophostoma carrikeri from Ecuador.Craniodental measurements of L. carrikeri and L. yasuni fromVelazco and Gardner (2012)are included for comparison.Measurement definitions and graphic representations are provided byVelazco and Gardner (2012).Craniodental measurements are provided in Table1.Sampling effort at this location consisted of 20 effective net-nights from 18 May to 5 June 2013, employing 12 nets for 7 hours per night.Mist nets were placed at ground level along trails in the open understory and across streams.A total of 446 bats, from three families, 24 genera, and 34 species were collected.The vegetation surrounding the Yasuni Research Station consists of primary and secondary tropical rainforest with an understory mainly of immature woody and herbaceous vegetation.