White-throated round-eared bat

The white-throated round-eared bat (Lophostoma silvicola) is a medium-sized bat of the family Phyllostomidae, found from Honduras to Bolivia, Paraguay and Brazil. It was first described in 1836 by the French naturalist Alcide d'Orbigny, and four subspecies are recognised. Its forearm is 50 mm or more, its fur is long and soft with a grey or greyish-brown back frosted by white-tipped hairs, and its throat is entirely white. The muzzle is naked and the lanceolate nose-leaf is fused to the upper lip. The bat roosts in cavities hollowed out of the nests of the termite Nasutitermes corniger, an unusual habit among bats, and up to nineteen bats have been found in one roost on Barro Colorado Island in Panama. It feeds mainly on insects gleaned from the upper surface of leaves, supplemented with fruit and pollen. It is common over much of its wide range and the IUCN rates it Least Concern.