Rosevear's serotine facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rosevear's serotine
Conservation status
Endangered (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Chiroptera
Family:	Vespertilionidae
Genus:	Pseudoromicia
Species:	P. roseveari
Binomial name
Pseudoromicia roseveari (Monadjem, Richards, Taylor & Stoffberg, 2013)
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Synonyms
Neoromicia roseveari

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The Rosevear's serotine (Pseudoromicia roseveari) is a type of vesper bat. These small bats live in the countries of Guinea and Liberia in West Africa. Scientists first officially described this species in 2013. Sadly, it is now listed as an endangered animal by a group called the IUCN. This means it is at high risk of disappearing forever.

Discovering the Rosevear's Serotine

Scientists officially named and described the Rosevear's serotine in 2013. Its closest animal relative is another bat called the dark-brown serotine (Pseudoromicia brunnea). These two bat species are very similar in their DNA.

When it was first discovered, scientists placed this bat in a group called Neoromicia. This was because it has a special tooth feature that all bats in that group share. The scientists who found the bat chose the name "roseveari" to honor a person named Donovan Reginald Rosevear. He was a very important researcher who studied West African bats a long time ago. He even wrote a famous book called The Bats of West Africa.

Later, in 2020, more studies showed that the Rosevear's serotine actually belongs to a different group, or genus, called Pseudoromicia.

What Does It Look Like?

The Rosevear's serotine is a small bat. Its total body length, from head to tail, is about 89–91 mm (3.5–3.6 in). Its tail is about 39–44 mm (1.5–1.7 in) long. The forearm, which is part of its wing, measures about 37 mm (1.5 in). Its hindfoot is tiny, only about 8 mm (0.31 in) long. The ears are about 13–14 mm (0.51–0.55 in) long. This bat weighs about 6–6.3 g (0.21–0.22 oz), which is very light!

Even though it's small, it's actually the largest of its kind in West Africa. Its fur is a dark chocolate brown color. The fur on its belly has two colors: the bottom part of each hair is darker than the tip. But the fur on its back is just one solid color.

Its ears are quite short and have a rounded tip. Inside the ear, there's a small flap called a tragus. This flap has a curved outer edge and a distinct bump at its base. Compared to other bats in its group, the Rosevear's serotine has a strong skull and a wide snout. It has a total of 32 teeth.

Life and Habits

Scientists don't know much about the life of the Rosevear's serotine. This is because only six of these bats have ever been found! We do know one interesting fact: a female bat caught in Guinea in March 2008 was pregnant. Her baby was about 20 mm (0.79 in) long from head to bottom.

Where Does It Live?

As mentioned, only six Rosevear's serotine bats have ever been recorded. Four of them were found near the border of Mount Nimba in Liberia. The other two were found in the Simandou Range in Guinea.

All the bats that were caught were found flying over small streams. These streams were located deep inside untouched rainforests. Two of the bats from Mount Nimba were found at an elevation of about 450–550 m (1,480–1,800 ft) above sea level.

Protecting Rosevear's Serotine

The IUCN has listed the Rosevear's serotine as an endangered animal. This means it faces a very high risk of becoming extinct in the wild.

The biggest dangers to this bat are things that destroy its home. These threats include deforestation, which is when forests are cut down. This happens because of slash-and-burn agriculture, where land is cleared by burning trees. Other threats are logging (cutting down trees for wood) and mining (digging for minerals). All these activities destroy the rainforests where these special bats live.