Five albino bats from Guerrero and Colima, Mexico

Abstract

Albinism, a hypopigmentary congenital disorder, can be partial (leucism) or complete (amelanism or true albinism). To date worldwide, 70 specimens of 43 bat species have been recorded as complete albinos, with three—Pteronotus parnellii, Macrotus waterhousii, and Artibeus intermedius—reported from Mexico. We document additional Mexican albinos, including four complete-albino Desmodus rotundus (one male and three females) from the state of Guerrero, and one partial-albino Artibeus jamaicensis from the state of Colima. Albino D. rotundus are known from Trinidad and Brazil, and our four records increase to 11 the known number of albinos, thus making D. rotundus the best represented bat species with the anomaly. Guerrero, with four albino bats, is the only place where more than a single albino bat has been found at the same locality. A subadult male D. rotundus, caught in October 2008, had clean pelage and was unaggressive; it likely had not entered into competitive interactions with other males for females. One adult female D. rotundus, captured in December 2008, was soiled, had several bruises on wings, and was aggressive, possibly reacting to previous agonistic interactions with colony members. She was lactating, suggesting that males in the wild do not discriminate against albino females, as apparently they do in captivity. This bat, released at point of capture, was seen again later in December 2008, as well as in March, May, and June 2009. In August 2009, we caught two more female albino D. rotundus, a young juvenile and a lactating adult. The adult was released and caught again in October and December 2009. A partial-albino Artibeus jamaicensis, caught in January 2001, was an adult pregnant female, the fourth record of a partial-albino and pregnant bat in Mexico, the first being an Artibeus phaeotis.