494 



Bulletin American Museum of Natural History. [Vol. XXXVII, 



bowels left in as a condiment but pressed out just before serving make them 

 choice morsels. Meat and bones are crunched with delight. The canines 

 of insectivorous bats, of which the natives speak as needles, are removed 

 with great care for, according to general belief, they would pierce the stom- 

 ach, with sure death as a result. Among the Mangbetu the fat, wrinkle- 

 lipped bats (Molossidse) are often brought to the king as a special delicacy. 

 Roasted and arrayed in rows of five and ten on a rod, they make a very 

 welcome present, but should one forget to break out their needles he would 

 be guilty of the gravest offense. Suspected of an intention to' murder the 

 king, his days would be numbered. 



Appendix B. — External Characters of the Families occurring in 

 the Ethiopian Region. 



The Rhinopomidse, with one species inhabiting Egypt, are not repre- 

 sented in our collection, but we wish to give the chief external characteristics 

 of all the 7 families of Microchiroptera known from the Ethiopian region. 

 Rhi?iopovia, the only genus, is easily distinguished from all other bats by 

 its slender tail (Fig. 17, A), nearly as long as head and body together and 

 greatly surpassing the very small interfemoral membrane, and by the pres- 

 ence of two phalanges in the index-finger. 



The Emballonuridse are represented by only a few species. The hair 

 of the body may frequently be short and appressed but never very long. 

 The muzzle is slightly elongate, the nostrils simple, the eyes relatively large, 

 and the ears erect with small rounded tragus (Plate XLIX). The legs 

 are slender, the wings curiously folded when at rest (Fig. 21), the wing- 

 membranes either dark or translucent. The tail always projects above the 

 large interfemoral membrane (Fig. 17, B), it fits so loosely in the wrinkled 

 skin that it can often be withdrawn (p. 515). They are extremely fast fliers 

 and can turn with exceptional ease. 



The Nycteridse are a small family. The body is covered with rather 

 long, loose fur, the nose-leaves conceal a frontal pit, the lower lip has a 

 warty tip, the ears are large with a small tragus, the eyes small (Fig. 3, p. 

 426). The long tail supports the large uropatagium and terminates in a 

 Y-shaped tip (Fig. 17, C). The wings are broad. 



The Megadermidse are known from only a few forms. We refer to the 

 notes on Lama frons affinis (p. 520) and also to Fig. 22 and Plate L. 

 The large nose-leaves with long bifid tragus, and the shortness or lack of a 

 tail are the chief characteristics of this family. Their semi-diurnal habits 

 are especially noteworthy. 



