Rediscovery of Rhinolophus schnitzleri and Characteristicsof Its Echolocation Calls

In June, 2014, 2 mid-size horseshoe bats were collected from Yi-liang County, Kunming, Yunnan, China. Their horseshoe is almost circular in shape and very broad; its anterior median emargination is very deep with two typical parallel sides. The skull is large in size with well-developed anterior median swellings that protrude forwards beyond the rostral wall. The first upper premolar is situated in the tooth-row, separated from the canine and the second by narrow spaces of equal length. The baculum is large, cylindrically swollen, and its base and tip are well expanded. Based on these characteristics, they were identified as Rhinolophus schnitzleri; a newly named species reported by Wu and Thong in 2009. All specimens were deposited in the Key Laboratory of Conservation and Application in Biodiversity of South China in Guangzhou University. Using Petterson D500x ultrasound recorder and Bat sound software, echo-location calls of R. schnitzleri at different status were recorded and analyzed. The records show that echolocation callswere FM-CF-FM type. Peaking frequency at flying and resting status are 23.87 kHz and 24.10 kHz, respectively. Results of t-test indicate that only inter-pulse interval was significantly different between two statuses(P < 0.01).