308 
NATURAL HISTORY . 
(the Painted Bat), to which we shall presently refer ; and, indeed, by some zoologists it has: 
been placed in the same genus ( Kerivoula ) with the hitter. Mr. Sw inhoe, in his memoir on the 
Mammals of Formosa (Proc. Zoc, Soc 1862, p. 357), refers to a species which he regards as allied to 
the Black and Orange Bat and the Painted Bat, but which was most probably the former, in the 
following terms : — “ The body of this Bat was of an orange-brown, but the wings were painted with 
orange-yellow and black. It was caught, suspended head downwards, on a cluster of the round fruit 
of the Longau tree (Nephelium lo/iganum). Now this tree is an evergreen, and all the year through 
some portion of its foliage is undergoing decay, the particular leaves being, in such a stage, partially 
orange and black, This Bat can therefore at all seasons suspend from its branches, and elude its 
enemies by its resemblance to the leaf of the tree. It was in August when this specimen was brought 
to me. It had at that season found the fruit ripe and reddish-yellow, and had tried to escape obser- 
vation in the semblance of its own tints to those of the fruit.” This example of “ protective 
mimicry,” if such is really its nature, is reproduced, as already stated, in the Painted Bat, and also, 
as remarked by Mr. Dobson, in Welwitsch’s Bat from Western Africa. 
THE PAINTED BAT * 
A small group of Bats, nearly related to the preceding, is distinguished as forming a distinct 
genus under the name of Kerivoula , originally proposed and founded on a native Cingalese name by 
the late Dr. Gray. These Bats have the apertures of the nostrils perfectly circular ; the first and 
second pre-molars in the upper jaw nearly as large as the third pre-molar, the ears large and funnel- 
shaped, the outer portion sweeping forward very much, and the spur of the heel long and stout, and 
curved backwards. 
The Painted Bat (. Kerivoula picki) has been already referred to as one of the species remark- 
able for their coloration. It is a small species, having the head and body only an inch and a half to 
an inch and three-quarters long. Its fur is of a deep orange colour above and paler beneath. The 
ears and interfemoral membrane, and the portions of membrane in front of the bones of the arm, are 
likewise deep orange, as are also the basal portions of the wing-membranes, broad bands bordering all 
the bones of the arms and fingers, and the hinder margin of the portions of membrane between the 
feet and the extremities of the fourth fingers, and the remainder of the wing-membranes being occupied 
by large triangular patches of deep black, more or less variegated with orange spots and streaks. 
This remarkable Bat is found in many parts of the Peninsula of India, and also in Ceylon, 
Burmah, Sumatra, and Java ; in fact, Mr. Dobson thinks that it is probably distributed in all parts of 
tropical Asia. It haunts the forests, and is very active in pursuit of insects. When disturbed in the 
day-time, according to Dr. Jerdon, it looks more like a Butterfly or a Moth than a Bat, and we may 
easily believe that the character and arrangement of its colours will give it an exceedingly un-batlike 
aspect. For its place of repose it selects the folded leaf of the plantain, and, according to Dr. Kelaart, 
its native Cingalese name of “ Kehelvoulha” (from which the generic name is derived) signifies u Plan- 
tain Bat.” The other species of this genus present nothing remarkable. 
THE HAPPY BAT.f 
The llarpiocephali are a curious group of Bats almost entirely confined to the Himalayan region, 
only two species being found elsewhere, namely, in the islands of Java and Sumatra, and one of these 
is also a Himalayan species. The most striking character of the genus is one which it displays in 
common with the TIarpy Fruit Bat (llarpj/ia Pallasii) already described, namely, the remarkable 
prominence of the nostrils, which project in a tubular form on each side of the muzzle. These Bats 
are further distinguished by the hairiness of the upper surface of the interfemoral membrane, which is 
sometimes entirely, and never less than half covered with hair, the wing-membrane being also gene- 
rally hairy for a greater extent than in other allied species. 
The Harpy Bat ( Harpiocephalus harpia) is about two inches and a half long, with a tail 
nearly two inches in length. Its fur is very soft and silky, that of the upper surface brownish or 
* Kerivoula picta. 
f Harpiocephalus harpia . 
