54 MAMMALS OF THE PACIFIC WORLD 



of the nose-leaf and by the fact that their toes have only two 

 joints beyond the metatarsal — the claw-bearing joint and a sin- 

 gle intermediate one. Other Old World bats have three joints 

 in all toes except the first. The nose-leaf is squarish, rounded, 

 or ends above in three points. Few members of this family 

 reach large size : the head and body measure from one and three- 

 fourths to three and one-half inches, the tail from three-fourths 

 to two and three-eighths inches, the forearm from one and three- 

 eighths to three and one-half inches. The family ranges 

 throughout the warmer regions of the Old World, east to 

 Australia and the Solomons, and north to the Luchu Islands. 

 Anthops of the Solomons has a nose-leaf like a rosette, covering 

 the face from eye to eye, at the top of which are three dome- 

 like structures, their apexes directed forward. It is a rare 

 species. 



Typical Bats. Family Vespertilionid^ 



This large family, containing about half of the species of 

 insectivorous bats in the Pacific region, is difficult to define. 

 The muzzle is simple except in the Murininse which have the 

 nostrils produced into tubes and in the Nyctophilinae which 

 have a small nose-leaf (see below, pp. 59, 60). The ears, 

 arising from the sides of the head, are separate in all species 

 except in the Nyctophilinae. The third finger has only two 

 bony joints beyond the metacarpal and the tail either ends at 

 the posterior edge of the interfemoral membrane or has one 

 vertebral joint projecting beyond it. The one or two incisors 

 on each side of the upper jaw, are widely separated by a gap, 

 the distance between the medial incisors being usually greater 

 than the distance from these teeth to the canines. The Vespertil- 

 ionidae is the most widely distributed family as well as the larg- 

 est, being found throughout the world, except for a few mid- 

 Pacific islands and beyond the limits of tree-growth. Five sub- 

 family groups are present in the Pacific and Malayan islands 

 and are distinguished below. 



