Cuban Fig-eating Bat Found in Florida Keys
In December 2004, a group of students from the Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences at Duke University were surveying for moths in the Key West Tropical Forest & Botanical Gardens on Stock Island. Two students, Wes Brooks and Betty Reardon, heard noises in a nearby tree. They looked up to discover a small bat hanging upside down, staring back at them. Wes took a photograph and upon their return, Betty began sending it by email to find someone who could identify it. A copy arrived at the Florida Bat Center and was forwarded to Dr. Ted Fleming of the University of Miami who identified it as Phyllops falcatus, also known as the Cuban fig-eating bat, or white-shouldered bat. This was exciting news because the Cuban fig-eating bat has only been found in Cuba, Hispaniola, and on Grand Cayman Island. In fact, they were thought to be extinct on Grand Cayman until a small group was found a few years ago. The appearance of this small bat in Key West is the first record of the species in Florida, or the United States for that matter.
The Florida Bat Center has been working over the past several years to determine what species of Caribbean bats are showing up in the Florida Keys and whether or not they have, or might be able to, adopt the Keys as their home. Cynthia Marks, Executive Director, reported that because the Lower Florida Keys are so close to the Caribbean islands, rare specimens of Neotropical bats occasionally show up in Key West and Stock Island. Two specimens of the Jamaican fruit-eating bat were found in 1995 and 1996 and two specimens of the Cuban flower bat were found in 2001 and 2002. It is likely the velvety free-tailed bat, an insect eating bat, now common in the Florida Keys arrived from Cuba. She pointed out that this is an example of how plants and animals naturally disperse to new locations.
In February 2005, staff and volunteers of the Florida Bat Center made arrangements to capture the bat, record its presence and confirm its identity. They searched the botanical gardens and discovered that the tree in which the bat had been photographed was an Arjuna almond (Terminalia arjuna), the only one in the gardens. The exact location within the tree was identified from the photograph and determined to be a night roost. Debris on the leaves indicated he had been frequently using the same location during the interim months. Although all bats have day roosts, where they sleep during the day, some bats also have night roosts, where they rest between foraging sprees. That evening they set up mist nets and quietly observed the tree roost. At about ten o’clock, the bat was spotted flying overhead. A few minutes later he was seen in the exact same spot where the Duke University students had photographed him in December! The following night, additional nets were set up and the bat was captured. He was weighed, measured, photographed, and found to be in good health.
The Cuban fig-eating bat is a member of the family Phyllostomidae, also known as “leaf-nosed” bats. Most phyllostomid species have a prominent structure on their nose resembling a leaf. Cuban fig-eating bats are only about 2½ inches in length, but they have a 13 inch wingspan, so they look much larger in flight. They have brownish-gray fur with small patches of white on each shoulder. One unusual feature of this species is the curved finger forming the leading edge of the wing. On most bats, the first two fingers of the wing are very close together, but on this species the leading finger curves outward creating a larger wing surface between the first two fingers. This is the basis for the species name, “falcatus,” which means “curved in a sickle-like manner.” In their normal habitat, Cuban fig-eating bats are known to eat the fruit of cecropia and ficus trees, but they likely feed on other small fruits as well.
So far, it appears this individual is living in Key West alone. He may have been blown over from Cuba during one of the hurricanes that hit Florida during 2004, or he may have arrived under his own power. Much of how he got here will likely remain a mystery and whether he stays or leaves is entirely of his own choosing. We are simply pleased that we were able to observe and record his presence. Our thanks to the Duke University students for sharing their photograph, and to the Key West Tropical Forest and Botanical Gardens for their cooperation and support.
©Copyright 2005 Florida Bat Conservancy