The New Zealand short-tailed bat,Mystacina tuberculata; a review of present knowledge

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Abstract
Research on the New Zealand short-tailed bat is reviewed from published and unpublished studies. The monotypic family Mystacinidae, at present assigned with the Vespertilionidae and Molossidae to the Vespertilionoidea, is considered to be best re-associated with the Emballonuridae and Noctilionidae in the Emballonuroidea. The two subspecies of Mystacina tuberculata Gray are retained pending elevation to specific status. The dichotomy of Mystacina stock probably occurred in the Pliocene, with the lesser short-tailed bat (M. t. tuberculata) and the greater short-tailed bat (M. t. robusta) evolving north and south respectively of the Pliocene Manawatu Strait at the onset of Pleistocene cooling. Mystacina has no known fossil record, and its origin and phylogeny are uncertain. The possibilities of an early to mid Tertiary origin in Antarctica, Australia, or South America and of an earlier Cretaceous origin in Gondwanaland are discussed. Mystacina feeds seasonally on forest fruits, pollen, and nectar, and probably the year round on flying and resting arthropods. The Mystacinidae thus join the tropical Phyllostomatidae and Pteropodidae as the only families among 19 at present recognised in the Chiroptera with representatives feeding wholly or partially on plants. The partially extensile tongue of Mystacina has a brush of fine papillae on the tip suggesting modification and specialisation for this diet. Several adaptations of Mystacina for terrestrial behaviour, such as the manner of folding and protecting the wings, and the basal talons on the claws of the robust feet, are unique among the Chiroptera. These assist the bat while feeding as well as roosting. Colonies reside usually in hollow trees or caves, but occur also in other terrestrial sites such as abandoned seabird burrows, holes in cliffs of volcanic pumice, and bat-excavated tunnels in the decayed floors and sides of fallen, hollow kauri trees. The short, erect, velvet-like fur of this bat, and its talons, are probably adaptations for this crevice-dwelling and tunnel-digging behaviour. The absence of mammalian predators and the lack of competition from other mammals throughout the Tertiary are thought to have significantly influenced the evolution of its terrestrial and arboreal adaptations. Mystacina is a relatively small bat. Adult male and female lesser short-tailed bats weigh about 12–15 g and have forearm lengths of 40–43 mm. A female bat with full-term foetus weighed 20 g, and a juvenile soon after birth weighed 3.2 g. Greater short-tailed bats have forearm lengths of 44–49 mm, and probably weigh 25–35 g. Lesser short-tailed bats at latitude 35°S are monoestrous and monotocous. Copulation probably occurs in autumn and parturition in summer (December-January). Reproductive data for greater short-tailed bats at latitude 47°S suggest that they may be polyoestrous and monotocous, parturition occurring between spring and autumn. Parasites and associated fauna of Mystacina include a recently described family, genus, and species of bat-fly (Mystacinobia zelandica) which, unlike all other bat-flies, feeds on the guano in the roosts and not on bat blood. Mystacina also has an undescribed tick (Argas (Carios) sp.), about six undescribed species of fur mite, and a recently described subfamily, genus, and species of sarcoptic wing mite (Chirophagoides mystacops). This bat appears to have no streblids, nycteribiids, fleas, or parasitic bugs, nor have any demodicid hair follicle mites, cestodes, nematodes, or blood parasites been found.