2021 SIMMONS ET AL.: NEW SPECIES OF MYOTIS 21 
other known Myotis species found on the Nimba Mountains, have calls with a similar peak 
frequency (41-43 kHz) but are shorter in bandwidth (36 kHz) and duration (2-2.8 kHz) 
(Schoeman and Waddington, 2011; Collen, 2012; Monadjem et al., 2017a). 
MOoLeEcULAR ANALYSES: Molecular analyses of mitochondrial cytochrome b sequences 
from selected specimens (appendix 2) support recognition of Myotis nimbaensis as a distinct 
species (table 2, figs. 10 and 11). Our analyses recovered well-supported clades consistent with 
results of Csorba et al. (2014) and Patterson et al. (2019), and in this context Myotis nimbaensis 
was found to represent a distinct lineage that nests within the subgenus Chrysopteron as sister 
to the M. tricolor complex (the clade consisting of M. tricolor 1, 2, and 3 of Patterson et al., 
2019). Monophyly of Myotis nimbaensis, the M. tricolor complex, and a clade consisting of these 
two lineages was highly supported (>95% bootstrap). Myotis nimbaensis is 5.18% different than 
M. tricolor 1, 5.43% from M. tricolor 2, and 5.08% than M. tricolor 3 (table 2). 
NaTuRAL History: The type locality habitat of Myotis nimbaensis occurs at the ecotone of 
high-altitude grassland, montane savanna, and gallery forest habitats of the Nimba Mountains 
around 1400 m elevation (fig. 1). As far as is known, the preferred (or exclusive) roosting habi- 
tat for this species is subterranean features. The two individuals that we captured were emerg- 
ing from day roosting in an abandoned mine adit (fig. 1), and echolocation calls similar to the 
release calls of Myotis nimbaensis recorded at other nearby adits, apparently confirming asso- 
ciation of M. nimbaensis with these underground structures. Myotis nimbaensis coroosts with 
other subterranean roosting bats and was detected at mine adits that house colonies of several 
hundred Rhinolophus guineensis and Hipposideros lamottei, the latter a bat species endemic to 
the Nimba Mountains (Monadjem et al., 2013). 
Foraging habitat for Myotis nimbaensis is unknown, but the six mine adits where M. nim- 
baensis echolocation calls were recorded occur in similar ecotone habitats at the interface of 
high-elevation grassland, montane savanna, and gallery forests along headwaters of the Zieé, 
Gouan, and Zougué rivers in the northern Guinean Nimba Mountains. 
DISCUSSION 
Discovery of a new large Myotis in western Africa is perhaps not surprising given the 
complexity of habitat types and relative lack of exploratory studies across much of the region, 
Moreover, considering the large gaps in the ranges of many known species, it seems likely that 
many populations remain unsampled, and other new species will be discovered in future years. 
Little is known about the habits of Myotis nimbaensis other than characteristics of the type 
locality and roosting habits at the type locality. However, this information provides a basis for 
comparisons with other species in the subgenus Chrysopteron. 
HABITAT USE AND ROOSTING HABITS IN AFRICAN Chrysopteron: Comparisons of the 
natural history of M. nimbaensis with that of similar African congeners is hindered by lack 
of information about these unusual bats. The best known of these is Myotis tricolor, a taxon 
known from Ethiopia, Liberia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo south to South Africa 
(Simmons, 2005; Monadjem and Jacobs, 2017b; Patterson et al., 2019), Myotis tricolor as 
