540 



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



inches (100 mm.); tail, 1.89 inches (48 mm.); expanse of wings, 11 inches 

 (280 mm.). 



With the exception of a few species of Pipistrellus, one may say that the 

 Vespertilionidse do not rank very high among the bats of the Congo with 

 regard to abundance of individuals, in spite of the considerable number of 

 species. So too, among the many Chiroptera we found living in the rocks 

 near Aba, only one belonged to that family, Miniopterus breyeri vicinior. 

 Beyond the fact that they live in colonies in fissures, and that the speci- 

 mens were procured by smoking them out, little can be said as to their habits. 



We collected tjiis dull-colored bat at Thysville in the only extensive 

 cave we investigated in the Belgian Congo; it had been taken previously 

 at Efulen, over 500 miles northward. Blackish-brown above, it is somewhat 

 lighter below, chiefly on account of the numerous gray hair-tips. Its total 

 length is 4 inches (102 mm.) and the dark wings have a spread of 11.8 inches 

 (300 mm.). The minute nose when greatly magnified resembles the muzzle 



of a cow in smoothness and in the form of the papillae, the anterior edge of the 

 lower lip has a hairless pad. Attention may be called to a curious adapta- 

 tion to their cave life, the folding of their wings when creeping over rocks or 

 when resting. The second phalanges of the third and fourth digits are 

 folded beneath the wing in a peculiar manner (Fig. 24). Their food, ac- 

 cording to stomach examinations, consists of rather small insects. They had 

 several interesting forms of parasites (p. 559). 



A few miles eastward of Thysville among the many grass-covered hills 



48. Miniopterus inflatus Thomas. 



Fig. 23. Miniopterus inflatus. Head of male (No. 49334). f. 



