Noteworthy records of abnormal coloration in Mexican bats

Abstract

Permanent atypical coloration in mammals can occur by a congenital condition or environmental causes, but it is expressed by defects in melanocytes (melanin-producing cells) number or function.  Around the world, bats have been reported with abnormal coloration, but only a handful of cases are from México.  We report records of chromatic disorders in several species captured from different locations in México.  Bats were captured with mist nets outside roosting sites or in trails with vegetation.  All individuals were released at the capture site.  We recorded 9 individuals of Phyllostomidae and 3 of Molossidae with chromatic disorders: 11 white-spotted individuals and 1 with albinism.  White spotting is recorded for the first time in Mimon cozumelae and the first record for Leptonycteris yerbabuenae and Nyctinomops laticaudatus in México.  Individuals with pigmentary disorders records are rare in nature and reporting the occurrence of these events in bats increases the knowledge of the natural history of species.