Mammals of the WorldEgyptian Tomb Bat
Taphozous perforatus
- Order
- Chiroptera
- Family
- Emballonuridae
- Genus
- Taphozous
- IUCN status
- LC
- Distribution
- Mauritania|Senegal|Guinea?|Cote d'Ivoire?|Gambia|Guinea-Bissau|Mali|Ghana|Togo|Benin|Burkina Faso|Niger|Nigeria|Botswana|Zimbabwe|Zambia?|Namibia?|Democratic Republic of the Congo|Tanzania|Kenya|Uganda|Ethiopia|Somalia|Djibouti|Eritrea?|South Sudan|Sudan|Egypt|Israel|Palestine?|Jordan|Saudi Arabia|Yemen|Oman|United Arab Emirates?|Iran|Pakistan|India
- Realm
- Afrotropic|Palearctic|Indomalaya
Other names: African Taphozous|Geoffroy's Tomb Bat|Lesser Tomb Bat|Perforated Taphozous Bat
About this species
- Size
- Total length 64.8–80mm; forearm 60.2–65.3mm
- Weight
- About 30g
- Diet
- Mostly moths; also termites, beetles, katydids and crickets (data from Ethiopia)
- Habitat
- Aerial insectivore in open space; not found above about 200m
- Range
- Africa, the Middle East, Iran, Pakistan and India
The Egyptian tomb bat is a medium- to large-sized sac-winged bat with a mass of about 30 g, a total body length of 64.8–80 mm and a forearm of 60.2–65.3 mm; subspecies vary in size. It is an aerial insectivore that forages in open space and is not found above about 200 m elevation. It occurs across much of Africa and the Middle East, and in Iran, Pakistan and India (Wikipedia, general species account).
Birth probably occurs in late May and early June. Based on animals captured in Ethiopia, it feeds mostly on moths, about 57% of the diet in one study, with termites, beetles, katydids and crickets making up most of the rest. The cached account describes African animals and gives nothing specific to India (Wikipedia, general species account).
Description: Wildlife of India guide, Wildlife of Everywhere (wildlifeofeverywhere.com); general species information paraphrased from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)