(Temminck, 1840)
Hairy-winged bat
External characters (Table 116)
This is a large Vespertilionid with an average forearm length of 47.8 mm (44.1-50.1 mm). The ears are evenly rounded on their anterior and posterior borders; the tragus of each is long, slightly convex anteriorly, concave on the posterior border with a basal notch. The muzzle is hairy except for the nostrils which, as in Murina (Mule1), are protuberant and outward facing. The pelage is thick and soft. On the dorsal surface, it is bright rufous on the hair tips, light buffy brown in the midparts and with grey roots (Hha1). On the ventral surface, it is buffy-grey on the tips with darker roots. The wings are a uniform brown. The forearms are lightly haired. The interfemoral membrane and wings adjacent to the body are covered with many long, reddish hairs. The feet are also hairy. According to Das, 1986b females tend to be larger than males. The baculum is most distinctive. According to Agrawal and Sinha, 1973, it is forked distally, "the two prongs looking like curved handles of a pair of pliers; prongs much longer than the main shaft and broader medially than at both ends; shaft small, ridged dorsally and grooved ventrally" (Fig. 256).
Cranial characters
The skull (Fig. 257) is robust with an average condylo-canine length of 19.3 mm (19.0-19.5 mm). The rostrum is short, broad and deep, with a clearly defined narial emargination. The zygomata are long and relatively strong, with a slight jugal expansion. The postorbital constriction is scarcely evident; it is only a little narrower than the rostrum and the upper part of the braincase does not greatly exceed it in breadth. The sagittal and lambdoid crests are well defined. The palate and post-palatal extension are essentially flat. The tympanic bullae and cochleae are small. The basioccipital pits are present but not deep. In the mandible, the coronoid process of each half is very large, over twice the height of the reduced condyle. The angular process is small.
Dentition
- Upper toothrow length (C-M3) averages 6.7 mm (6.5-6.9 mm). The first upper incisor (I2) is short and robust with a small secondary cusp and a distinct antero-external cingular cusp. The second (I3) is situated externally and very slightly posterior to I2; it is tightly compressed between I2 and the canine; it has three accessory cusps and a crown area that slightly exceeds I2. The upper canine is massive; its breadth exceeds its antero-posterior length and the cingulum is well defined. Both upper premolars are large, with well developed hypoconal flanges; the crown area of the first (PM2) equals or exceeds that of M1. The upper molars are greatly modified and reduced; the mesostyle is essentially absent; the metacone is the largest cusp. M2 is two-thirds the crown area of M1. M3 is essentially absent, represented by a small 'scale' of a tooth, which is applied to the posterior surface of M2.
- In the mandible, the incisors are closely crowded between the canines. The canine is large and short. The lower premolars greatly exceed the molars in size. The first (pm2) is two-thirds the crown area of the second (pm4). The talonid of all three lower molars are reduced, about one third the crown area of the trigonid. m3 is about half the crown area of m2 which is slightly smaller than m1.
Variation
According to Das, 1986b, there is considerable individual variation in forearm length and pelage colour and as such he synonymised madrassius with lasyurus and referred all specimens from India to this latter race (H. h. lasyurus ). Corbet and Hill, 1992 suggest that specimens from north-east India included by Das, 1986b in H. harpia may on further study prove to be the larger H. mordax Thomas, 1923.