# Little forest bat
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{{Short description|Species of bat}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}
{{speciesbox
| name = Little Forest Bat
| image = Vespadelus vulturnus thumb.jpg
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = [{{cite iucn |author=Lumsden, L.F. |author2=Reardon, T.B. |author3=Armstrong, K.N. |year=2021 |amends=2020 |title=''Vespadelus vulturnus'' |volume=2021 |article-number=e.T7945A209533303 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T7945A209533303.en |access-date=20 December 2023}}]
| genus = Vespadelus
| species = vulturnus
| authority = ([Thomas](/source/Oldfield_Thomas), 1914)
| synonyms =
* ''Eptesicus vulturnus'' Thomas, 1914
* ''Eptesicus pumilus vulturnus'' Thomas 1914
* ''Vespertilio pygmaeus'' Becker 1858 (not Leach 1825)
}}
The '''little forest bat''' ('''''Vespadelus vulturnus''''') is a species of [vesper bat](/source/vesper_bat) in the family Vespertilionidae. It is found only in south-eastern [Australia](/source/Australia), including [Tasmania](/source/Tasmania). It is a tiny bat often weighing less than {{convert|4|g|oz|abbr=on}} (males in some areas weigh as little as {{convert|2.5|g|oz|abbr=on}}).[{{Cite book|title=The mammals of Australia|date=2007|publisher=New Holland Publishers|editor-last1=Van Dyck| editor-first1= Steve| editor-last2= Strahan| editor-first2= Ronald|isbn=978-1-877069-25-3|edition=3rd|location=Sydney|oclc=225635210|page=572}}] It is sometimes referred to as Australia's smallest mammal,[{{Cite journal|doi=10.1071/WR04039 |title=Day roost selection by female little forest bats (Vespadelus vulturnus) within remnant woodland on Phillip Island, Victoria |year=2005 |last1=Campbell |first1=Susan |last2=Lumsden |first2=Linda F. |last3=Kirkwood |first3=Roger |last4=Coulson |first4=Graeme |journal=Wildlife Research |volume=32 |page=183|issue=2|bibcode=2005WildR..32..183C }}][{{Cite journal|vauthors=Willis CK, Turbill C, Geiser F |title=Torpor and thermal energetics in a tiny Australian vespertilionid, the little forest bat (Vespadelus vulturnus) |journal=Journal of Comparative Physiology B |volume=175 |issue=7 |pages=479–86 |date=October 2005 |pmid=16088391 |doi=10.1007/s00360-005-0008-0|s2cid=21710868 }}] although the Northern or Koopmans Pipistrelle, ''[Pipistrellus westralis](/source/Pipistrellus_westralis)'', is possibly smaller, weighing on average around {{convert|3|g|oz|abbr=on}}.[{{Cite web |url=http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/wildlife/mammals/bats.html |title=Tasmania PWS - Wildlife - Bats |access-date=11 March 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080721025124/http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/wildlife/mammals/bats.html |archive-date=21 July 2008 }}]
==Biology and ecology==
The little forest bat is one of the most commonly observed bats in south-eastern Australia, it is found in a variety of habitats including [Eucalypt](/source/Eucalypt) woodlands and forests as well as in rural, semi-rural and some urban areas. It is an [insectivore](/source/insectivore) and roosts in [tree hollows](/source/tree_hollows).[
Females become sexually mature in their first year and males in their second year. It is assumed the males wake from [torpor](/source/torpor) and mate with the females during winter. A single pup is born in spring (October–November).][{{Cite journal | doi=10.1071/zo9930021| title=Reproduction in the Bats Vespadelus-Vulturnus, V-Regulus and V-Darlingtoni (Microchiroptera, Vespertilionidae) in Coastal South-Eastern Australia| year=1993| last1=Tidemann| first1=CR| journal=Australian Journal of Zoology| volume=41| page=21}}]
==Identification==
The little forest bat is very small with pale grey or brownish fur. The [tragus](/source/Tragus_(ear)) is usually white and the skin on the [face](/source/face), feet and [forearm](/source/forearm) is usually pinkish. Adults usually weigh between {{convert|2.5|and|5|g|oz|abbr=on}} and the [forearm](/source/forearm) is usually less than {{convert|30|mm|in|abbr=on}} (mean ={{convert|28.5|mm|in|abbr=on}}). The wingspan can range up to {{convert|15|cm|in|abbr=on}} and the body length is up to {{convert|5|cm|in|abbr=on}}.[{{cite web |title=Little Forest Bat |url=http://www.biodiversitysnapshots.net.au/BDRS/public/speciesInfo.htm?spid=462&mode=fieldguide |website=Biodiversity Snapshots |publisher=[Museum of Victoria](/source/Museum_of_Victoria) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110227075310/http://www.biodiversitysnapshots.net.au/BDRS/public/speciesInfo.htm?spid=462&mode=fieldguide |archive-date=27 February 2011}}] Females are slightly larger than males.[Sue Churchill (2008) Australian bats (Reed New Holland, Frenchs Forest) p. 177.] Males have a distinctly shaped [baculum](/source/baculum). There is some variation in the [morphology](/source/morphology_(biology)) of this species across its range, with some taxonomists suggesting there may be [cryptic species](/source/cryptic_species) that have not yet been identified within the species.[{{Cite web |url=http://environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/publications/action/bats/6.html |title=The Action Plan for Australian Bats - Taxonomy and Selection of Taxa for This Action Plan |access-date=12 March 2008 |archive-date=20 February 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080220002239/http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/publications/action/bats/6.html |url-status=live }}]
==Echolocation call==
The [echolocation](/source/animal_echolocation) call of the little forest bat is regionally variable, in New South Wales the characteristic frequency of search phase calls is between 42.5 and 53 [kilohertz](/source/kilohertz) depending on the region where it is found.[{{Cite web | url=http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/surveys/Batcalls.htm | title=Bat calls of NSW - region-based guide to the echolocation calls of Microchiropteran bats | access-date=11 March 2008 | archive-date=2 March 2008 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080302131153/http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/surveys/Batcalls.htm | url-status=live }}][{{Cite journal|vauthors=Law BS, Reinhold L, Pennay M |year=2002 |title=Geographic variation in the echolocation calls of Vespadelus spp. (Vespertilionidae) from New South Wales and Queensland, Australia |journal=Acta Chiropterologica |volume=4 |issue=2 |pages=201–215 |doi=10.3161/001.004.0208|doi-access=free }}] This is more than double the maximum frequency of the human [hearing range](/source/hearing_range) and cannot be heard without the assistance of a [bat detector](/source/bat_detector).
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Vespertilionidae|V.|V.}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q305691}}
Category:Bats of Australia
Category:Vespadelus
Category:Mammals of Tasmania
Category:Mammals of South Australia
Category:Mammals of New South Wales
Category:Mammals of Victoria (state)
Category:Mammals described in 1914
Category:Taxa named by Oldfield Thomas
Category:Taxonomy articles created by Polbot
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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Little forest bat](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_forest_bat) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_forest_bat?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.