Bonin flying fox

Bonin flying fox
松井 淳（naturalist67279） · CC0 · source
Name	Bonin flying fox
Status	EX
Status system	IUCN3.1
Genus	Pteropus
Species	pselaphon
Authority	Kuroda, 1924

Bonin flying fox The Bonin flying fox was an extinct megabat once native to the Ogasawara Islands, historically known for its large size and island endemism. It was described in the early 20th century during a period of intense zoological survey activity linked to expeditions and colonial-era natural history collections. Contemporary accounts intersect with broader narratives involving Pacific exploration, Japanese naturalists, and conservation debates involving island fauna.

Taxonomy and naming

Originally described by Nagamichi Kuroda in 1924 during a period when collectors associated with institutions such as the British Museum, Smithsonian Institution, and the Tokyo Imperial University were actively cataloguing Pacific specimens, the Bonin flying fox was placed in the genus Pteropus. Subsequent taxonomic treatments referenced comparative work by authorities at the Natural History Museum, London, researchers publishing in journals related to the Royal Society of London, the American Museum of Natural History, and Japanese museums. Nomenclatural history connects to the biogeographic literature on the Ryukyu Islands, the Mariana Islands, and other Pacific archipelagos studied alongside reports from figures associated with the British Empire and the Empire of Japan. Debates over its status invoked museum catalogues, field notes by regional collectors, and syntheses by authors contributing to works housed in the Bibliothèque nationale de France and archives of the Zoological Society of London.

Description

Contemporary descriptions compared its morphology to other species in Pteropus hypomelanus groups and specimens referenced in collections at the American Museum of Natural History and the Natural History Museum, London. Accounts emphasized a large wingspan and pelage features documented by field naturalists working with organizations such as the Yokohama Specimen Company and contributors to bulletins of the Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science. Morphometric comparisons were made against museum vouchers catalogued in databases maintained by institutions like the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History and the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, echoing measurement standards used by researchers affiliated with the Royal Society of London and the Linnean Society of London.

Distribution and habitat

The species was restricted to the Ogasawara Islands (also known as the Bonin Islands), a Pacific archipelago politically administered from Tokyo and biogeographically linked to broader Pacific island networks including the Mariana Islands and the Bonin Islands subtropical evergreen forests. Historical records derive from expeditions and surveys commissioned by authorities in Japan and reported in outlets connected to the Imperial Household Agency and academic institutions such as the University of Tokyo. Habitat descriptions align with remnant native forest stands, coastal woodlands, and insular ecosystems studied by ecologists associated with organizations like the United Nations Environment Programme and regional laboratories.

Behaviour and ecology

Contemporary notes from naturalists and collectors suggested frugivorous foraging similar to patterns documented for other Pteropus taxa by researchers working with the Australian Museum and the Bishop Museum. Ecological roles inferred from comparative studies invoked pollination and seed dispersal dynamics explored in research programs financed or reported to bodies such as the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the World Wildlife Fund, and academic groups at the University of California. Observations by fieldworkers affiliated with colonial and national administrations paralleled studies of flight dynamics and roosting behavior published by contributors to periodicals of the Royal Society and regional natural history societies.

Reproduction and life cycle

Life-history information was scant but extrapolated from reproductive patterns observed in congeners documented by researchers from the Australian National University, the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, and authors contributing to compilations held at the British Library. References to breeding seasonality, litter size, and parental care drew on comparative frameworks used by mammalogists associated with the American Society of Mammalogists and regional zoological gardens which maintained related species for study under permits issued by governmental agencies.

Conservation status and threats

The species is regarded as extinct, a conclusion appearing in syntheses coordinated by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and cited in regional conservation reviews produced by organizations such as the World Wildlife Fund, the Japanese Ministry of the Environment, and researchers linked to the University of Tokyo. Drivers of decline echoed patterns documented across island systems — habitat loss tied to settlement and plantation agriculture, hunting pressure referenced in colonial-era accounts, and introduced predators and competitors noted in invasive species assessments coordinated with the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Global Invasive Species Programme. Museum specimen records housed in institutions like the Natural History Museum, London and the Smithsonian Institution remain central to reconstructing its distribution and morphology, while discussions in conservation literature engage policy bodies including the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and national agencies in Japan.

Category:Pteropus Category:Extinct mammals of Asia