Systematics of Anoura cultrata, A. brevirostrum, and A. werckleae

Abstract

We assessed intrapopulation and geographic variation in the glossophagine bats Anoura cultrata, A. brevirostrum, and A. werckleae (Phyllostomidae) from univariate and multivariate statistical analyses of mensural data and from studies of qualitative cranial and dental characters. Intrapopulational variation was analyzed in a sample from westcentral Colombia; sexual dimorphism was significant and qualitative characters varied considerably. Analysis of geographic variation revealed clinal variation in size, the smallest individuals occurring in Peru and the largest in Costa Rica and Panama. Moreover, variation in qualitative characters that distinguish A. cultrata, A. brevirostrum, and A. werckleae is great, and we conclude that these taxa are conspecific and should be regarded as a single species, A. cultrata.