i88 



SMITHSONIAN MlSCliLLANhOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 69 



VAMPYRUS SPECTRUM NELSONI Goldman 



Nelson's l""alsc \'anipijc Bat 



yampyms .v/v./nox ttclsoni Goldman, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, Vol. 30, 

 p. 115, May *3, 1917. Type from Coatracoalcos, Vera Cruz, Mexico. 



Nelson's false vampire, the largest North American bat, dilYers 

 from the typical form of South America in somewhat smaller size 

 and cranial details, especially the reduction of the hypoconc of the 

 posterior upper jircmolar. It is reddish-brown in color. 



The general range of the species is from the Amazonian region 

 niirlhward through Middle America to southern Mexico. In Middle 

 America it sccnis to he much less abundant than farther south, or at 



/V.'. 





l''j(i. 10. — Vainpyrus spectiuiti iiclsoni. 

 No. 78137, U. S. Nat. Mils. About tiat. sire. 



least lew cx.uuplcs Ironi that region have found their way into 

 museum collections. A very large bat that I saw one evening in 

 rather slow bulterlly-liUe llight along the bank of the Chagres at 

 Alhajuela I took to be of this species, but throughout the period 

 covered by my work in Panama I was unsuccessful in securing 

 specimens. Alston (,u^79' P- 3*)) "otes the species collected in 

 Panama by McLcannan, probably at some point along the line of the 

 Panama railroad. More recently (Allen. 1904, p. 78) has recorded 

 a pair taken by j. H. Ratty at Boquortm in western Panama. 



This bat. now known \o he hannloss. was fornioily believed to be 

 a bloodsucker, aiul the unfm tnn.ito uatno allaohod to it, together 

 with its large size and ropugnaiU general appearance, have doubtless 

 fostered this misconception of its real character. The true vam- 

 pires belong to the genera Desmodus, Diphylla and Dtarmus which 

 constitute a separate family, tlio ^,•sn10liolltiti^r. The false vanijMre 



