New species of bat in Ecuador – but it may already be extinct

Tiny bat weighs just 3.5 grammes

November 2010: A new species of bat has discovered in Ecuador - but after decades spent confirming its unique status, it may already be extinct.

NATURAL HISTORY? The unique tiny bat species may already be extinct, warns Ricardo Moratelli.

The first specimen of the bat now named Myotis diminutus, for its incredibly small size - it weighs just 3.5 grammes - was collected over 30 years ago in the Chocó biodiversity hotspot, amid the moist forests of western Ecuador.

Ricardo Moratelli who is the lead author on the paper describing the news species told Wildlife Extra: ‘As with many other newly described species, we know nothing about the natural history of Myotis diminutus.

Unfortunately, the prospects for learning more about it are bleak.

Area faces an uncertain future

‘The moist forests of western Ecuador at one time covered a large part of the Pacific Coastal area, blanketing the coastal plain and extending up the relatively steep slopes of the western side of the Andes. These forests undoubtedly harboured an enormous wealth and diversity of species, but exist today as a disrupted series of tiny fragments under continuing threat and facing an uncertain future.

‘Until new specimens of this insectivorous bat are caught, we will do not know whether the species is still alive.'
Dr Moratelli says the only way to discover this is to carry out a thorough inventory of the forest - but with so little known about the bat it does not even have an official conservation status.

‘If field works confirm the species only for the moist forests of western Ecuador, probably it will be one of the most endangered South American species of bat.'