Honduran white bat

The Honduran white bat (Ectophylla alba), also called the Caribbean white tent-making bat, is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae and the only member of the genus Ectophylla; it was described in 1892 by Harrison Allen. Its bright white fur is found in only six of the roughly 1,300 known bat species, while its ears, nose-leaf and lips are bright yellowish orange from carotenoid pigments, a mechanism studied for clues about human macular degeneration. It is small, weighing 5 to 6 grams, with a head and body length of 37 to 47 millimetres. It cuts the veins of Heliconia leaves so that they fold into tents, where small colonies of one to fifteen roost by day and the light filtering through the leaves gives its fur a greenish cast. It is a specialist frugivore that feeds almost exclusively on one fig, Ficus colubrinae, and females give birth to one pup at a time. It is found in Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and western Panama from sea level to 700 metres, and is evaluated as near threatened because habitat is being converted to farmland.