The feeding specialization in Chiroderma doriae (Phyllostomidae, Sternodermatinae) with comments on its conservation implications

ABSTRACT

Taddei (1973, 1980) demonstrated that feeding habits of some Neotropical fruit-eating bats, such as Chiroderma doriae has specific food requirements. As we report below, this author presented consistent evidence associating C. doriaeto fruits of Ficus, a resource that may play a keystone role in tropical forests (Terbogh, 1986, Shanahan et al. 2001). However, very few data on the feeding habits of this bat have appeared in the literature and the feeding specialization reported by Taddei (1973, 1980) has been largely overviewed (Nowak 1994, Eisenberg & Redford 1999, Shanahan et al. 2001).