SCIENTIFIC NAME: Otonycteris hemprichi Peters, 1859
COMMON NAMES: Hemprich's bat, Hemprich's big-eared bat, Desert lpng-eared bat
SYNONYMS: ustus Fitzinger, Heuglin, 1866; brevimanus Severtzov, 1873; leucophaeus Severtzov, 1873; petersi Anderson, de Winton, 1902; cinerea Satunin, 1909; jin Cheesman, Hinton, 1924; saharae Laurent, 1936.
DIMENSIONS: Body mass 17-30 g, head and body length 66-82 mm, tail length is about 60 mm, forearm length 57-67 mm, wingspan 35-40 cm.
DESCRIPTION: Large vespertilionid bat. Ears large, about 40 mm in length, not ajoin each other; tragus large, lancet shaped; facial mask is naked, pinkish. Keel is not developed. Fur relatively thick and long, almost white with yellowish, brownish or greyish tinges. Wings are large and wide, with brounish-grey membranes. No small upper premolars, number of incisors 1/3. Caryotype includes 30 chromosomes.
DISTRIBUTION: From Northern Africa to Tajikistan and Pakistan. In mountain rich elevations up to 2400 m ASL.
NATURAL HISTORY: Inhabits arid landscapes Use rock splits and human buildings as day roosts. Foraging flight is low to the earth surface. Feed on insects and small vertebrates; can hover over the prey and take it from the substrate surface. Echolocation calls are low intensive, sweep from ca. 40 to 18 kHz, with maximum energy at around 30-32 kHz. Natural history is poorly investigated. In summer females can make nursing colonyes up to 60 individuals. Two newborns in litter, reproduction is poorly known.
STATUS: Rare poorly investigated species. IUCN: "LR: lc".