Tengu komori (English spelling) Japanese great tube-nosed bat

An animal of the mammalian order Chiroptera and family Vespertilionidae. It is endemic to Japan, distributed across Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu, and lives in forests, caves, and sometimes buildings. Its forearm length is 40 mm, and its head and body length 60 mm. Its nostrils are tubular and protruding, its ears are oval, and its tragus is long and pointed. Its body hair is woolly, and its interfemoral membrane is densely hairy on both the upper and lower sides. The upper side of its body is lye-colored, with long, shining silvery hairs growing sparsely, and its underside is pale olive-gray. It has wide wings and flies at a relatively low altitude. It is an insectivorous species that usually lives alone or in small numbers, and leaves early in the evening to eat insects such as rhinoceros beetles and moths. Many remains have been found in caves, but there is no record of a large living colony.

Closely related species in Japan include the lesser long-eared bat M. silvatica , which is smaller than this species, has prominent nostrils, and has a golden-colored coat, found in Hokkaido, Honshu, and Tsushima, and the medium-sized, leaf-colored, long-eared bat M. tenebrosa , found in Tsushima. The lesser long-eared bat recorded in 1920 (Taisho 9) from Yakushima is thought to be the latter. The closely related northern long-eared bat M. leucogaster is found in northeastern India, China, and Sakhalin.

[Yoshiyuki Mizuko]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

哺乳(ほにゅう)綱翼手目ヒナコウモリ科の動物。日本の固有種で、本州、四国、九州に分布し、森林、洞窟(どうくつ)、ときに建造物に生息する。前腕長40ミリメートル、頭胴長60ミリメートル。鼻孔は管状に突出し、耳介は卵円形、耳珠は細長く先端がとがる。体毛は羊毛状、腿間膜(たいかんまく)は上下面とも毛を密生する。体上面は灰汁(あく)色で、銀色に光る長い上毛がまばらに生え、下面は淡オリーブ灰色。翼が幅広く、比較的低空を飛翔(ひしょう)する。普通、単独または数頭ですみ、夕方早く飛び出しカブトムシやガなどの昆虫を食べる虫食性の種である。洞窟で多数の遺骸(いがい)が発見されたことがあるが、生きた大きなコロニーの記録はない。

　近縁種として日本には、本種より小形で鼻孔が突出し、毛色が金色に近いコテングコウモリM. silvaticaが北海道、本州、対馬(つしま)などに、中形で腿間膜に毛がなく枯れ葉色のクチバテングコウモリM. tenebrosaが対馬に分布する。1920年（大正9）に屋久島(やくしま)からコテングコウモリとして記録されたものは、後者と思われる。なお、インド北東部、中国、樺太(からふと)（サハリン）などには近縁のキタテングコウモリM. leucogasterを産する。

［吉行瑞子］

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