Liberia ««- 



expanded. A deep, sharp-edged groove extends from the nostrils 

 through the middle of the forehead to the band of skin which 

 connects the bases of the very large ears. The sides of this 

 frontal depression are fringed by small nodules of naked skin. 

 The lower jaw projects beyond the upper, so that this bat is 

 " under-hung." Unlike the other leaf-nosed bats of the pre- 

 ceding^ family, there is a distinct tragus or earlet to the ears. 



Vespertilio {Vesper ugo) stampflii and V. nanus are allied in 

 structure and appearance to the English Serotine bat. They are 

 of course small bats, with flat broad heads. The ears are not 

 particularly large, anci the tragus is small and curved inwards. 

 The nostrils are set somewhat wide apart and are slightly 

 projecting, and the middle of the lower lip has a naked space 

 which is slightly excrescent. These bats also possess a post- 

 calcaral lobule of the wing membrane, just below the heel-spur. 



Pipistrellus is represented by P. minutus and P. tenuipinnis. 

 These bats are very like our common English pipistrelle, the 

 smallest and commonest bat in England. It is probable that 

 the relatively large bat of the genus Scotophilus {S. gigcis) of 

 Equatorial Africa, the forearm of which measures nearly three 

 and a half inches, is also found in Liberia ; but it has not yet 

 been sent home, nor has the remarkable white-winged bat [S. 

 albofusctts) of the Gambia, though it is also probably an inhabitant 

 of Liberia. 



The last of the Liberian bats to be recorded is the brightly 

 coloured Kerivoula afrkana^ which is not much larger than the 

 English noctule. Its large ears very nearly touch over the 

 middle of the forehead. 1 he tragus is long and erect, the eyes 

 are very small and placed low down near the base of the ears. 

 There is considerable breadth between the nostrils, but the nose 

 is simple and only marked by a slight groove. The colours of 

 this bat are orange-brown and brownish black. 



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