Morphological And Radiographic Studies On The Skull Of The Straw-Coloured Fruit Bat Eidolon Helvum (Chiroptera: Pteropodidae)

Although 20 % of the extant mammalians are chiropterans, there are only a few studies about their skull morphology. The aim of this work is to broaden the knowledge in this field by investigating Eidolon helvum skulls and describing their anatomical characters with a particular focus on general shape, sutures, foramina and processes. We study the external surface of the bones and make a detailed description of 6 rostral bones (nasal, premaxilla, maxilla, palatine, lacrimal, jugal), 9 cranial bones (frontal, parietal, interparietal, pterygoid, sphenoid complex, squamosal, petrosal, ectotympanic, occipital complex) and the mandible. We also make a radiographic analysis by taking X-ray images in lateral and dorsoventral direction. Comparisons with other bats like Pteropus lylei and Desmodus rotundus show interspecific variations. So this work helps building a solid basis for further phylogenetic, functional or systematic studies.