NEW RECORDS OF BATS (Mammalia: Chiroptera) FROM CU LAO CHAM AND LY SON ARCHIPELAGOS, CENTRAL VIETNAM
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Cu Lao Cham and Ly Son are two well-known archipelagos of Vietnam for their spectacular landscapes and diverse ecosystems including forest, cave, and agriculture. However, their bat fauna has received little attention. Between July 2017 and August 2018, we conducted a series of mammal surveys with emphasis on bats of these two archipelagos. Bats were captured by mist nets and harp traps. Echolocation calls of echolocating bats were recorded using the PCTape system then analysed by Selena software. With reference to all available literatures and specimens from the recent surveys, we obtained and confirmed records of nine bat species from Cu Lao Cham and three species from Ly Son. Of these, Megaderma spasma and Taphozous melanopogon are new to Cu Lao Cham while Rhinolophus macrotis is new to Ly Son. These three species were uncommon within Cu Lao Cham and Ly Son during our surveys and also rarely recorded from other islands of Vietnam. These new records not only expand the known distributional range but also provide worthwhile notes on a narrow geographical variation in morphology and echolocation of each species.
Cu Lao Cham and Ly Son are well-known archipelagos of Vietnam for their spectacular landscapes with different habitats including caves (Thong, 2016; Thong et al., 2016b). Cu Lao Cham comprises eight islands: Hon Lao, Hon Dai, Hon Mo, Hon Kho Me, Hon Kho Con, Hon La, Hon Tai and Hon Ong. Of these, Hon Lao is the largest and most important island for biodiversity conservation while seven remaining ones are small, mostly covered by scrubs. Kuznetsov (2000) included records of 5 bat species (Hipposideros armiger, H. bicolor, H. larvatus, Pipistrellus ceylonicus, P. javanucus) from Cu Lao Cham without reference to any specimen. Thong (2016) and Thong et al. (2016b) provided the first confirmed records of mammals from Cu Lao Cham with reference to observational results and identification of collected specimens. Results from those publications included unusual characteristics of several species (e.g. Cynopterus horsfieldii) and suggested that further research on the bats of Cu Lao Cham and surroundings is needed.
Mu Cu and Cu Lao Re islands of Ly Son have been connected since 2017
Located in Quang Ngai province, near Cu Lao Cham, Ly Son comprises three natural islands, namely Cu Lao Re, Cu Lao Bo Bai and Mu Cu. However, Cu Lao Re and Mu Cu have been connected by an artificial levee since 2017 (Fig. 1). With high value natural habitats, culture and history, Ly Son has been an attractive destination for tourists since 2007. The development of tourism and agriculture has led to an extraordinary change of natural habitats in the archipelago. Therefore, the remaining natural vegetation within Ly Son has been largely reduced and fragmented. It is remarkable that, prior to 2017, terrestrial plants and animals of the archipelago were unstudied and, as consequence, its vertebrates had never been included in any previous publication. In order to expand knowledge about the bat faunas in Cu Lao Cham and Ly Son, we conducted a series of field surveys for an assessment of their diversity and conservation status. This paper provides information of the bat species recently recorded over the recent surveys.
Morphology and echolocation features of Megaderma spasma, Taphozous melanopogon and Rhinolophus macrotis are similar to respective populations from mainland and other islands of Vietnam. Megaderma spasma, Taphozous melanopogon and Rhinolophus macrotis are uncommon within the Cu Lao Cham and Ly Son archipelagos. There are no major threats to these species populations within these two archipelagos. However, without timely and practical conservation campaigns, their roosts and foraging habitats would be threatened by some expansion of areas for tourism in Cu Lao Cham and agriculture in Ly Son.
Lateral view of Taphozous melanopogon from Cu Lao Cham
