134 



CHIROPTERA 



Order CHIROPTERA. 



1779. Ghiroptera Blumenbach, Handbuch der Naturgeschichte, p. 74. 



Geographical distribution. — Practically cosmopolitan ; only 

 absent from the treeless arctic and antarctic regions, and from 

 the most remote islands of the Pacific and South Atlantic 

 oceans. 



Characters. — Terrestial placental mammals with the anterior 

 limbs modified for true flight, the fingers greatly elongated (third 

 usually at least as long as head and body) and joined together 

 by a membrane which extends to sides of body and legs ; 

 shoulder girdle much more developed than pelvis, the sternum 

 usually keeled ; knee directed backward. 



Remarks. — The order Ghiroptera, containing the only living 

 vertebrates, except birds, capable of true flight, is the most 

 sharply circumscribed of the main groups of mammals. Not 

 only are its living members invariably distinct from all other 

 recent forms, but the fossils also are, so far as known, equally 

 well differentiated. Therefore no intermediate stage has yet 

 been found connecting the bats with any other order. That 

 they are, however, not distantly related to the Insectivora, is 

 shown by numerous peculiarities of structure, among others the 

 relatively simple character of the brain. Two sub-orders are 

 recognized among the recent members of the order, the 

 Megachiroptera, not represented in Europe, with less highly 

 modified skeleton of fore limb, and more modified teeth, and the 

 Microchiroptera with more highly developed wing and in most 

 instances more primitive teeth. 



Sub-Order MICROCHIROPTERA. 



1821. Insectivora Gray, London Medical Repository, xv, p. 299, April 1, 



1821. 

 1872. Animalivora Gill, Arrangement of the Families of Mammals, p. 16, 



November, 1872. 

 1875. Microchiroptera Dobson, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 4th ser., xvi, 



p. 346, November, 1872. 

 1878. Microchiroptera Dobson, Catal. Chiropt. Brit. Mus., p. 2. 

 1907. Microchiroptera Miller, Families and Genera of Bats, p. 78, June 29, 



1907. 



Geographical distribution. — The same as that of the order. 

 In Europe north to the limits of tree growth, west to Ireland 

 and the Azores. 



