- Scientific Name
- Saccopteryx leptura
- Family
- Emballonuridae
- Global Conservation Status (IUCN)
- Least Concern
- Region
- South America
- Diet
- Insectivore
Data Sheet
Diet: Insectivore
- Strictly insectivorous, they hunt small, flying insects, including flying ants.
Fun Fact:
- Unlike most nocturnal bats, some populations of lesser sac-winged bats are commonly active in bright conditions. They readily hunt in broad daylight, and fly fearlessly on moonlit nights.
Appearance:
- These bats are small and delicate, weighing only 3-6g. Their dark brown fur highlights two pale, wavy stripes that run down their back.
Habitat:
- Lesser sac-winged bats inhabit lowland deciduous and evergreen forests. They typically roost in small groups of fewer than ten individuals, most often clinging to tree trunks, though they are also known to roost on buildings.
Conservation Concerns:
- Like many species, these bats are highly susceptible to habitat loss from deforestation for pasture and agriculture.
Bat Conservation International Projects:
Cave Conservation in Brazil
The goal of this work is to utilize legal protection measures and tax incentives to provide long-term protection for 70 important cave roosts, protecting up to 82 species of bats.
More
Literature Cited:
Appel, G., López-Baucells, A., Ernest-Magnusson, W., & Bobrowiec, P. E. D. (2017). Aerial insectivorous bat activity in relation to moonlight intensity. Mammalian Biology, 85(1), 37-46.
Appel, G., da Cunha Tavares, V., de Assis, R. L., & Bobrowiec, P. E. D. (2021). Natural roosts used by bats in Central Amazonia, Brazil. Mastozoología Neotropical, 28(1), 537.
Ladino, L. M., Vallejo, D. C., & Sánchez, F. (2025). A model for the dynamics of roosting in buildings by a Neotropical aerial-insectivorous bat. Ecological Modelling, 510, 111328.
Nogueira, M. R., Peracchi, A. L., & Pol, A. (2002). Notes on the lesser white-lined bat, Saccopteryx leptura (Schreber) (Chiroptera, Emballonuridae), from southeastern Brazil. Revista Brasileira de Zoologia, 19, 1123-1130.
Timm, R. M. (2011). Reid, FA 2009. A Field Guide to the Mammals of Central America & Southeast Mexico. Oxford University Press, New York.
Vivas-Toro, I., & Murillo-García, O. E. (2020). Diurnal flying activity of a Neotropical bat (Saccopteryx leptura): effect of light intensity, temperature, and canopy cover. Acta Chiropterologica, 22(1), 87-94.
Yancey, Franklin D., Jim R. Goetze, Clyde Jones, and S. Schreber. (1998) Saccopteryx leptura. American Society of Mammologists.
Links to websites cited:
https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/19807/22005807
https://www.scielo.br/j/rbzool/a/jQmgqYZTgFW6sNQrxNxFy7S/?format=pdf&lang=en
https://www.ingentaconnect.com/contentone/miiz/actac/2020/00000022/00000001/art00008
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1016/j.mambio.2016.11.005#citeas
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S030438002500314X
