Southeastern long-eared bat, South-eastern long-eared bat, Corben's long-eared bat
The south-eastern long-eared bat or Corben's long-eared bat (Nyctophilus corbeni ), is a species of bat found in Australia. It occurs in the woodlands of the Murray Darling Basin and adjacent areas.
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starts withThe south-eastern long-eared bat has a head and body length of approximately 50-75mm and a tail length of about 35-50mm. They have a broad wing and tail membrane surface which permits slow but highly controllable flight. Males are lighter (11-15g) in weight than females (14-21g). These bats have a broader skull and jaw which along with their larger size makes them more distinguishable from other long-eared bats. The south-eastern long-eared bat is classed as a microbat, and the majority of microbats only have a wingspan of approximately 30 cm that stretches from the fingers and then down the side of the body to the leg; and it is made of remarkable skin that is soft, strong and flexible and is able to repair punctures itself. The bats can control their flight by 'feeling' for turbulence thanks to being covered with tiny touch receptors which are small bumps with tiny hairs protruding from the centre, which are sensitive to air flow.
Nyctophilus corbeni is found in an array of inland woodland vegetation types. The types of vegetation include box, ironbark and cypress pine woodlands; Buloke, Belah, River Red Gum and Black Box woodlands as well as a variety of mallee vegetation. It is noted that the south-eastern long-eared bat is ten times more likely to be found where there is vast strands of vegetation, compared to small areas of forest remnants. These bats appear to favour large hollows as roosting sites, revealing how essential it is to protect old-growth vegetation. Female south-eastern long-eared bats form small maternity colonies in tree hollows, whereas the males are typically under exfoliating bark in the summer. They usually forage within several kilometres of their roosting site, at low height and around tree trunks, close to vegetation.
The south-eastern long-eared bat is rare throughout most of its distribution. Its distribution is limited to around the Murray-Darling Basin in south-eastern Australia. It is found in several reserve systems in Australia including the Murray-Sunset National Park in Victoria; the Yathong Nature Reserve in New South Wales; the Danggali Conservation Park and the Commonwealth Reserve at Calperum Station both located in South Australia.
The south-eastern long-eared bat undertakes its foraging activities amongst areas of trees in the landscape. It is an avid insect eater, with beetles, bugs and moths commonly on the menu. This bat species concentrates on aerial foraging, consuming its prey in flight, permitting it to continue to be airborne for hours at a time.
Currently there is minimal reproductive biology information available on the south-eastern long-eared bat. The south-eastern long-eared bat is a placental mammal and as with most species of bats only has one young each year, even though twins do occur. The males take about two years to reach sexual maturity whereas the females usually only take a year. The females have two teats and suckle their young from one to five months. The young are born approximately 3 to 5 months after mating, during the time of greatest food accessibility and they usually reach adult size by 3 months of age. Usually the pregnant females gather together in maternity colonies a few weeks prior to giving birth.
The south-eastern long-eared bat (Nyctophilus corbeni ) is listed as vulnerable under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. There are current and potential threats that have been acknowledged and they include the following: habitat loss and fragmentation; forestry activities; tree hollow competition; inappropriate fire regimes; predation by feral species, exposure to agrichemical and climate change.
