Mammalian Biology

https://doi.org/10.1007/s42991-020-00054-6

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

A checklist of bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) from Iraq

Montazer K. Mensoor1 

Received: 19 April 2020 / Accepted: 9 July 2020

© Deutsche Gesellschaft für Säugetierkunde 2020

Abstract
The current research article represents the first complete review and detailed documentation of available data on the dis-
tribution of bats in Iraq. All information was collected from literature records, survey data, and museum collections. This
checklist of bats of Iraq has been developed based on several data sources, including previously published literature and
recent discoveries of new species. According to previous and recent records, the bat checklist in Iraq includes 19 species of
six families: Emballonuridae (one species), Molossidae (one species), Rhinopomatidae (two species), Rhinolophidae (four
species), Hipposideridae (one species), Vespertilionidae (nine species), and Miniopteridae (one species). Some corrections
were added to previously published records, according to the revised identifications and the new taxonomic information.
However, there are still many gaps in the data available on the bats of Iraq. Further field research should be conducted in the
future to update the current checklist.

Keywords  Chiroptera · Distribution · Iraq · Checklist of bats

Introduction
Iraq, with a total area of 438,320 km2, is located at the north-
western end of the Persian Gulf. It is bordered by Kuwait,
Saudi Arabia to the south, Jordan to the west, Syria to the
northwest, Turkey to the north and Iran to the east (Haggett
2002). Topographically, Iraq is shaped like a basin, consist-
ing of the Mesopotamian alluvial plain of the Tigris and the
Euphrates rivers (AQUASTAT 2009). This plain is encircled
by mountains in the north and the east, some of these moun-
tains may reach altitudes of 3550 m above sea level, and by
desert areas in the south and west, which cover over 40% of
the land area. For administrative purposes, Iraq is divided
into eighteen provinces, of which three (Erbil, Dohuk, and
Sulaymaniya) are grouped in an autonomous region in the
north and the other fifteen provinces are in central and south-
ern Iraq (AQUASTAT 2009). Iraq’s shoreline is just 58 km.
There are two main rivers, the Tigris and Euphrates, flow-
ing south through the centre of Iraq and run into the Shatt
Handling editor: Danilo Russo.
* Montazer K. Mensoor
montazerkamel@gmail.com
1
International Centre for Training, Research and Development
(ICTRD), Baghdad, Iraq
al-Arab near the Persian Gulf (Jones et al. 2008). These two
rivers provide Iraq with significant amounts of productive
land (Al Sheikhly et al. 2015). The climate of Iraq is catego-
rized as sub-tropical continental; where summer season is
hot and dry, and winter is fairly cold, with precipitation rate
ranges from 700 to 1000 mm (Al‐Nassar et al. 2020). The
maximum recorded temperature is 50 °C, while the mini-
mum recorded temperature is − 3 °C (Salman et al. 2018)
(Fig. 1).
Biogeographically, Iraq is divided into five biomes:
desert, steppe, alluvial and marshland, forest, and alpine
(Malinowski 2002). The desert biomes cover the western
and southern deserts which are located west of the Euphrates
River and extend to the Syrian, Jordanian and Saudi Arabian
borders. The steppe biomes include the areas that are located
north of the western desert. These areas extend from the
Syrian borders across the Tigris River to cover the foothills.
The upper Mesopotamia is located in the moist steppe region
while the lower Mesopotamia lies in the dry steppe area.
Alluvial and marshland biomes cover the areas between the
Tigris and Euphrates rivers in central and southern Iraq.
Forest biomes in Iraq are located in the north and northeast
while the alpine biomes are confined to the extreme north-
eastern parts of Iraq (Al Ali 1977). Bats are distributed and
occur in all the five biomes of Iraq. They represent more
than 22% of all mammalian species in Iraq according to the

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 M. K. Mensoor
Fig. 1  A map shows the geographic position of Iraq in the Middle East and the world
most recent checklist of mammals developed by Al Sheikhly
et al. (2015). The current paper aims to provide an updated
information to the current data on Chiroptera in Iraq. This
paper contributes to the data of the bat fauna of Iraq by sum-
marizing all available distributional records of bats from Iraq
to provide a standard checklist of species, and also providing
for the first-time a detailed documentation on the available
records and specimens to help future research.
Materials and methods
Distribution information were collected from previously
published literature records. Specimen holdings from the
American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), Natural
History Museum in London (NHM), Bernice Pauahi Bishop
Museum (BPBM), The Field Museum of Natural History
(FMNH) and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural
History (USNM) were accessed through the online database
of the museums’ collections. The Iraqi Museum of Natu-
ral History (IMNH) was visited by the author to review its
specimens’ collection. The families, genera, species and
subspecies were listed in the order they appear in the 3rd
13
edition of Wilson and Reeder’s mammal species of the world
(2005) (Fig. 2).
Results and discussion
The current research has produced a checklist of 19 bat spe-
cies for Iraq. In comparison, Chessman (1920) described
eight species and Sanborn (1940) reported six species in
his checklist of mammals from Iraq. Ellerman and Morri-
son-Scott (1951) also listed six species in their checklist of
Palearctic mammals. Weber (1955) discussed the geographic
distribution of three bat species in Iraq while Harrison
(1956) reported eight species. Hatt (1959) listed 20 spe-
cies in his research paper on the mammals of Iraq. Harrison
(1964) included 16 bat species collected from Iraq. Mahdi
and George (1969) counted 19 species in their systematic list
of vertebrates in Iraq. Nader (1971) provided biogeographi-
cal and morphological information on three species only.
Horáček et al. (2000) reported 18 species in his taxonomic
and biogeographic review of the Palearctic bats. Wilson
and Reeder (2005) listed 13 species in their taxonomic and
geographic reference of mammal species of the world. Amr
A checklist of bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) from Iraq
Fig. 2  Administrative map of
Iraq
(2009), Garstecki and Amr (2011) noted 15 species. Benda
et al. (2010) and Nature Iraq (2019) listed 18 species. Al
Sheikhly et al. (2015) reported 20 species in their checklist
of mammals in Iraq.
Of the six families included in this checklist, Vespertilio-
nidae has the maximum number of recorded species (n = 9,
47.36%), followed by Rhinolophidae (n = 4, 21.05%), and
Rhinopomatidae (n = 2, 10.52%). While Emballonuridae,
Hipposideridae, Molossidae and Miniopteridae had the
lowest number of recorded species with only one species
(4.6%). According to the International Union for Conserva-
tion of Nature (IUCN), four species in the current checklist:
Rhinolophus mehelyi, Rhinolophus euryale, Myotis capac-
cinii, and Myotis emarginatus are listed as “vulnerable”;
13 species were listed as “Least Concern” while Eptesicus
anatolicus and Miniopterus pallidus were not evaluated yet
by the IUCN.
In addition to the confirmed data provided by the cur-
rent checklist on 19 species, there are some other bat spe-
cies reported to occur in Iraq but these occurrences require
more verifiable field research in order to include them in
any checklist in the future. Vespevtilio murinus and Pleco-
tus auritus were reported by Metaxas (1891) in Iraq but
Hatt (1959) noted that such reports were unsubstantiated.
Kleiman et al. (2003), Dietz and Kiefer (2016) and Taylor
(2019) noted that Rhinolophus blasii could be distributed
in the northern parts of Arabia including Iraq. Qumsiyeh
et al. (1998) and Taylor (2019) suggested that Tadarida
aegyptiaca could be found in western Iraq as an extension
to its distribution in Jordan since this species is well-known
for travelling in long distances. Battersby (2010) proposed
the occurrence of Hypsugo savii and Eptesicus serotinus in
the far north of Iraq and the uttermost mountainous parts
of the northeastern Iraq respectively. Moreover, Pipistrel-
lus pipistrellus was listed as a species that is probable to
occur in the northeast, east and southeast of Iraq (Battersby
2010). Harrison (1964) indicated that Rousettus aegyptiacus
does not have any distribution in southern Iraq. However,
it has been confirmed the occurrence of this species in the
Arabian Peninsula from southern Turkey to Aden (DeBlase
1972b). Furthermore, Rousettus aegyptiacus was reported in
the south of Iraq by Wilson and Reeder (2005) and Horáček
et al. (2000), but without giving any details on the locality.
Bate (1930), Sanborn (1940) and Hatt (1959) reported Myo-
tis myotis in their papers, but Al-Sheikhly et al. (2015) con-
sidered it as M. blythii without giving any morphological,
genetic, or biogeographical reasons. Sanborn (1940) pro-
vided measurements and identification details of M. myotis.
M. blythii is known to hybridize occasionally with its close
relative M. myotis (Taylor 2019). In addition, both species
share roosting sites and they are morphologically almost
identical. Based on these results, the current study suggests
13
 M. K. Mensoor

that both bat species M. myotis and M. blythii can be found Table 1  List of bats of Iraq
in the same area described earlier by Bate (1930), Sanborn Family Genus Species
(1940), and Hatt (1959). Arlettaz et al. (1997) proposed that
this species could occur in Iraq as an eastern extension of Emballonuridae Taphozous Taphozous nudiventris
its European distributional range. DeBlase (1972a) reported Hipposideridae Asellia Asellia tridens
Rhinopoma muscatellum as a bat species that could occur Molossidae Tadarida Tadarida teniotis
in the south of Iraq. P. Benda confirmed R. muscatellum Rhinolophidae Rhinolophus Rhinolophus euryale
occurs in Iraq but there is no identified voucher specimen yet Rhinolophus ferrumequinum
(P. Benda 2020, personal communication, April 2020). In Rhinolophus hipposideros
addition, Hill (1977) and Taylor (2019) noted that this spe- Rhinolophus mehelyi
cies occurs in south of Iraq. Van Cakenberghe and De Vree Rhinopomatidae Rhinopoma Rhinopoma hardwickii
(1994) suggested this species could occur in the southeast- Rhinopoma microphyllum
ern areas of Iraq. However, there are no available recorded Vespertilionidae Otonycteris Otonycteris hemprichii
specimens or details on its specific occurrence or locality Pipistrellus Pipistrellus kuhlii
distribution in Iraq. Rhyneptesicus Rhyneptesicus nasutus
Pipistrellus rueppellii was recorded from Al-Adhamiyah Eptesicus Eptesicus bottae
(Nader 1971); Basra and at Beit Sheikh Mahommad at the Eptesicus anatolicus
marshes of Chahala in Amara (Cheesman 1920; Hatt 1959; Myotis Myotis emarginatus
Harrison 1964); Agergoof (Harrison and Bates 1991). Al- Myotis blythii
Sheikhly et al. (2015) noted this is an uncommon bat that Myotis capaccinii
inhabits settlements and ruins of central and southern Iraq. Myotis nattereri
Taylor (2019) reported this species as a widespread bat Miniopteridae Miniopterus Miniopterus pallidus
which prefers open, arid areas in the south and southeast
of Iraq.
Although bats are widely distributed throughout Iraq,
there still serious concern over the decline in their numbers.
The most important factor that may threaten the biodiver-
sity of bats in Iraq is the loss of their habitat and this can be
resulted from urbanization and modernization, which nega-
tively affect the distribution of bats in Iraq. In addition to the
natural predators of bats such as snakes, hawks, and owls.
Furthermore, illegal hunting and killing of bats as a way of
sports still exist in some areas in Iraq (Table 1).

Checklist of bat species in Iraq

1—Family: Emballonuridae

IUCN status: Least Concern.

Taphozous nudiventris (Cretzschmar 1830).
Common English name: Naked -rumped tomb bat.
Species distribution: the Euphrates river (Kinnear 1916);
Umara, Shaiba, Ctesiphon, and Basra (Cheesman 1920);
Baghdad and Al-Khalis (Sanborn 1940); Ctesiphon arch
(Weber 1955); between Habbaniya and Ramadi, Habban-
iya, and at Shaiba (Harrison 1956); Basra and Euphrates
River banks (Hatt 1959); Aqqar-Quf, Baghdad, Fao, and
Najaf (Harrison 1964); along the Tigris and Euphrates
Rivers (Al-Robaae 1968); Nu’maniya (Marinkelle 1977);
Babel (Matskasi 1980); southern Iraq (Mahmoud and Jaw-
dat 1982); Babel and Basrah (Sawada and Molan 1988);
Babel (Muhammed and Kagei 1990); Baghdad, Karbala,
and Hatra (Northwest Iraq) (Nadachowski et  al. 1990);

13
A checklist of bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) from Iraq
Habbaniya, Abu Ghraib, Iskandariya, and Karbala (Aldu-
laimi et al. 1996); Baghdad and Karbala (Mohammad 1999);
between Haditha and Qurna and between Hatra to Qurna
(Benda et al. 2006); Nasseriya, Umara, and Basra (Haba
2009); The port of Basra (Al-Maqal Port) (Abdul Azeez
et al. 2011); Baghdad (Etawi 2012); Najaf (Mohammad et al.
2013); Dalmaj marshes (Mohammed 2014); al-Chebayesh
(southern marshes) (Al Sheikhly et  al. 2015); Huwaiza
marsh (Al-Zubaidi 2017); central marshes (MOHE 2017);
Nearby Razzaza lake (Mohammad and Al-Zubaidi 2017).
Balad air base (Uvizl et al. 2019).
Notes: This is a very common bat that can be found all over
Iraq along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers (Al Sheikhly
et al. 2015). However, Battersby (2010) noted in his range
maps of European bats that this species is common in north-
east, east, and southeast of Iraq only.
2—Family: Hipposideridae
Asellia tridens (E. Geoffroy 1813).
Common English name: Trident Leaf-nosed Bat.
IUCN status: Least Concern.
Species distribution: Mosul (Wettstein 1913); Falluja and
“Lake”Aqar Quf (Cheesman 1920); Baghdad (FMNH
1935); Baghdad (Sanborn 1940); Baghdad (Tate 1941); A1
Qa’im near the Syrian border (Weber 1955); Eastern Bagh-
dad (Hubbard 1956); between Ramadi and Habbaniya and
from Uqhaidhir (Harrison 1956); Mustansiriyah in Bagh-
dad (Hatt 1959); recorded at many localities by Al-Robaae
(1968), Shamsuddin and Mohammad (1978), Al-Kifl and
Al- Khasfa; (Matskasi 1980); from Baghdad and Haditha
(Sawada and Mohammad 1989); Baghdad and 40 km in a
cave south of Karbala (Nadachowski et al. 1990); Al-Tar
cave 30  km southwest Karbala (Muhammed and Kagei
1990); Habbaniya, Abu Ghraib, Iskandariya, and Karbala
(Aldulaimi et al. 1996); Baghdad and Karbala (Mohammad
1999); Sheikh Hadid sink hole near Haditha (Al-Sheikhly
2012).
Notes: The preferable habitat of this bat is an arid lowland
scrub. According to Al Sheikhly et al. (2015), this species is
common in deserts and arid grasslands and valleys of central
Iraq. Taylor (2019) described it as an arid-habitat specialist.
3—Family: Molossidae
Tadarida teniotis (Rafinesque 1814).
Common English name: European Free-tailed Bat.
IUCN status: Least Concern.
Species distribution: between Ramadi and Habbaniya (Har-
rison 1956, 1964).
Notes: According to Al Sheikhly et al. (2015), this bat is
uncommon and it is confined to the rocky terrain and crev-
ices in western Iraq. It was reported by other studies but
without giving exact locality in Iraq (Hatt 1959; Wilson and
Reeder 2005). The failure to register more records for this
species maybe because of its ability to glide at high altitudes
and travel for long distances (Qumsiyeh et al. 1998; Taylor
2019). Benda and Piraccini (2016) provided a zoogeographi-
cal range map of this bat in Iraq. Their map showed that this
species could occur in the west and northwest of Iraq (Anbar
and Mosul).
13
 M. K. Mensoor
4—Family: Rhinolophidae
Rhinolophus euryale (Blasius 1853).
Common English name: Mediterranean Horseshoe Bat.
IUCN status: Vulnerable.
Species distribution: Bjil village, Akre District in northern
Iraq (Al-Sheikhly et al. 2016); south of Iraq (Csorba et al.
2003).
Notes: Taylor (2019) suggested that this species could occur
along the southeastern areas of Iraq. Since this is a cave
dweller bat, further research should target and explore the
caves at the Iraq–Iran southeastern borders to confirm the
current distribution of this species in that area.
5—Family: Rhinolophidae
Rhinolophus ferrumequinum (Schreber 1774).
Common English name: Greater Horseshoe Bat.
IUCN status: Least concern.
13
Species distribution: 130 km W Ramadi (Niazi 1976); Sala-
hadin and Erbil Liwa (Nader and Kock 1983); Duhok (Har-
rison 1964). Mosul (Al-Robaae 1968; Harrison and Bates
1991); caves of Beeston, Shanidar, and Gawaran (Moham-
med et al. 2017); Saqlawiya (MOCH 2018); Haditha (Jiang
et al. 2019).
Notes: The preferable habitat of this bat is forests, open and
cultivated areas. According to Al Sheikhly et al. (2015), the
distribution of R. ferrumequinum in Iraq is restricted to the
limestone caverns and suitable retreats of northern and cen-
tral Iraq. Hatt (1959) noted that Metaxas (1891) and Kinnear
(1916) reported this species occurred in Iraq.
6—Family: Rhinolophidae
Rhinolophus hipposideros (Bechstein 1800).
Common English name: Lesser Horseshoe Bat.
IUCN status: Least concern.
Species distribution: Baghdad (Cheesman 1920); Saqlawiya
(MOCH 2018).
A checklist of bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) from Iraq

Notes: The preferable habitat of this bat is the open country

and caves. Battersby (2010) noted this species could be com-
mon in the far north of Iraq. Taylor (2019) reported this is a
common bat in Iraq.

7—Family: Rhinolophidae

Rhinolophus mehelyi (Matschie 1901).

Common English name: Mehely’s horseshoe bat.

IUCN status: Vulnerable.

Species distribution: 19 km E Hilla (Sanborn 1956); near

Haditha (Hatt 1959; Nader 1971). A colony of 83 individu-
als were found roosting in a small cave at Sheikh Hadid sink
hole near Haditha (Al-Sheikhly 2012).

Notes: Common in desert zones with dry scrub, rocky

ridges, wadis, and oases, and is well-adapted to manage little
water supplies (Taylor 2019). Hill (1977) listed it a common
species in Iraq. Al Sheikhly et al. (2015) described this spe-
cies as rare and confined to the caverns in the arid steppes
of western and central Iraq.

9—Family: Rhinopomatidae
Species distribution: 43  km SW Ash-Shinaffya and
130 km W Ramadi; specimens collected in Al-Alfasia Cave Rhinopoma microphyllum (Brünnich 1782).
(8 km S Haditha) (Harrison and Bates 1991); Al-Khasfa
and Haditha (Matskási 1980); three individuals were found Common English name: Greater Mouse-tailed Bat.
roosting in a tunnel near Mawat (Al Sheikhly et al. 2015).
IUCN status: Least concern.
Notes: Al Sheikhly et al. (2015) indicated that the distribu-
tion of this species include the caves of arid areas in central
and western Iraq. However, Battersby (2010) suggested that
this bat could be common in the east of Iraq.

8—Family: Rhinopomatidae

Rhinopoma hardwickii (Gray 1831).

Common English name: Lesser mouse-tailed bat.

IUCN status: Least concern.

Species distribution: Haditha (Khajuria 1988); Sawada and

Mohammad (1989).

13
 M. K. Mensoor
Notes: Khajuria (1988) recorded this species from Haditha
in western Iraq as a new species in Iraq (Rhinopoma had-
ithaensis), then Kock et al. (2001) considered it a synonym
of the Greater Mouse-tailed Bat (R. microphyllum). Tay-
lor (2019) classified this species as a desert specialist with
extensive distribution in Arabia. Al Sheikhly et al. (2015)
reported its distribution as uncertain in Iraq.
10—Family: Vespertilionidae
Otonycteris hemprichii (Peters 1859).
Common English name: Desert long-eared bat, Hemprich’s
Desert Bat, Hemprich’s long-eared bat.
IUCN status: Least concern.
Species distribution: Chamchamal-Jarmo valley in Kirkuk
(Nader and Kock 1983; Harrison and Bates 1991); Fao
(Gharaibeh and Qumsiyeh 1995); Al-Cidr and Himreen
foothills (Al-Sheikhly 2012); Al-Baghdadi (Khalil 2017;
Almohammedi 2014); Khan al Baghdadi (Almohammedi
et al. 2016); Abu Ghraib (Khazal et al. 2018); Jadiriyah
(Almarie et al. 2019).
Notes: A desert bat but can also be found in arid regions.
Common in the western, central, and southwestern desert
areas of Iraq (Al Sheikhly et al. 2015). Kinnear (1916) and
Ellerman and Morrison-Scott (1951) reported this species
in Fao but registered it as O. petersi (Hatt 1959).
11—Family: Vespertilionidae
Pipistrellus kuhlii (Kuhl 1817).
Common English name: Kuhl’s Pipistrelle.
13
IUCN status: Least concern.
Species distribution: Karbala, Baghdad, Mosul, Qalat
Sharqat, Mejadin, and Bahrka (Wettstein 1913); Amara,
Baghdad, and Sheik Saad (Cheesman 1920); Fao (Chess-
man and Hinton 1924); Baghdad, Amara marshes, Shaikh
Falih as Saihud’s camp, Al-Halfayah, Balad, Sinjar, Badra,
Al-Khalis, Nasiriya, Karbala, and Rustamiyah Farm near
Baghdad (Sanborn 1940); Amara (Ellerman and Morrison-
Scott 1951); Baghdad, A1-Qa’im, the pipeline station T-1
and in Dhibban near Habbaniya (Weber 1955); Shaiba,
Ramadi marshes, south of Amiriya, Ramadi-Habbaniya,
Basra, Falluja, and Uqhaidhir (Harrison 1956); Baghdad
(Hatt 1959); Specimens from Fao, Kut as Sayyid, Basra,
Khaniqin, Wadia south of Majar al Kabir of Amara, and
from Ain Zalah 45  km S Mosul (Harrison1964); Bagh-
dad (Marinkelle 1977); recorded also by Shamsuddin and
Mohammad (1978); Baghdad, Mosul, and southern Kar-
bala; and Al-Shenawi et al. (1982); Baghdad (Muhammed
and Kagei 1990); Southern  Iraq  (Harrison and Bates
1991); Habbaniya, Abu Ghraib, Iskandariya, and Karbala
(Aldulaimi et al. 1996); Hamdaniya and Telkef (Hassan
and Muhammed 2005); Ukhaider Palace south of Karbala
(Hamza et al. 2007); Karbala (Abdulatif et al. 2011); Dalmaj
marshes (Mohammed 2014); Ramadi, Adhamiyah, Jadriyah,
AlYarmook, Garmat Ali and Hammar Marsh (Al-Sheikhly
et al. 2015); Farms around Baghdad (Mutlak et al. 2015);
Al-Alam northeast of Tikrit (Rashid 2016); at the northern
edge of Al-Hawizeh Marsh (MOHE 2017); Huwaiza marsh
(Al-Zubaidi 2017); Baghdad and Karbala (Al-Awadi and
Mutlak 2017); Tikrit (Rashid 2018).
Notes: This is the most common bat species in Iraq. It can be
found everywhere throughout Iraq roosting in old buildings
and uninhabited houses.
A checklist of bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) from Iraq
12—Family: Vespertilionidae
Rhyneptesicus nasutus (Dobson 1877).
Common English name: Sind Serotine.
IUCN status: Least concern.
Species distribution: Basrah and Nasiriya (Sanborn 1940);
Basrah (Ellerman and Morrison-Scott 1951); Zubeir and
Shaiba as Eptesicus n. pellucens (Harrison 1964); Qalat
Salih and Al-Muqdadiya (Nader 1971; Harrison and Bates
1991).
Notes: Taylor (2019) noted that this is a bat of open, arid
habitats in Iraq and it is often classed within the genus Ept-
esicus. Sanborn (1940) and Ellerman and Morrison-Scott
(1951) described this species as Eptesicus walli, while Har-
rison (1964), Nader (1971), and Harrison and Bates (1991)
reported this species as Eptesicus nasutus, but Juste et al.
(2013) reclassified it as a separate genus on craniodental
and phylogenetic basis.
13—Family: Vespertilionidae
Eptesicus bottae (Peters 1869).
Common English name: Botta’s Serotine.
IUCN status: Least concern.
Species distribution: Baghdad, Nasiriya, Karbala (San-
born 1940); Baghdad (Ellerman and Morrison-Scott 1951);
Basra, Baghdad, Nasiriya, Karbala (Hatt 1959); Habbaniya
(Harrison 1956); Ramadi and Sulaymaniyah (Felten 1971);
35 km north of Najaf, Al-Mahmudiya, Baqubah, and Al-
Khalis (Nader and Kock 1990). The American Museum of
Natural History (AMNH) has a specimen of this species
that was collected from Baghdad on the 30th of November
1961. The Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH) has a
number of specimens collected from Baghdad, Nasiriya and
Karbala but without a specified date of collection.
Notes: Very common bat in the north, centre, and south of
Iraq except the western desert areas (Battersby 2010). On
the other hand, Artyushin et al. (2018) reported the occur-
rence of this species in the northwest, west, and southwest
of Iraq. Al-Sheikhly et al. (2015) noted this is a widespread
but limited to central and southern Iraq. Sanborn (1940)
reported this species as Eptesicus hingstoni while Ellerman
and Morrison-Scott (1951) and Hatt (1959) described this
species as Eptesicus sodalis.
14—Family: Vespertilionidae
Eptesicus anatolicus (Felten 1971).
Common English name: Anatolian Serotine Bat.
IUCN status: Not evaluated.
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 M. K. Mensoor

Notes: According to Al-Sheikhly et al. (2015), no subspe-

cies can be assigned since there is no available voucher
specimens in Iraq. Nizai (1976) described the distribution
of this bat in the midwestern areas of Iraq but without any
exact locality or detailed description. While according to
Battersby (2010), distribution of Myotis emarginatus in Iraq
is confined to the extreme northeastern areas.

16—Family: Vespertilionidae

Myotis blythii (Tomes 1857).

Common English name: Lesser Mouse-eared Bat.

IUCN status: Least concern.

Species distribution: Ser Amadia and Kani Mase (Harrison
1956; Harrison and Bates 1991); Al-Alam (Al-Sheikhly
2012); North, east, and southeast of Iraq (Artyushin et al.
2018).

Notes: Eptesicus anatolicus regained a species status after

having been considered within E. bottae (Juste et al. 2013).
According to Al-Sheikhly et al. (2015), the distribution of
E. anatolicus is confined to the mountains and foothills of
central and northern Iraq. On the other hand, Artyushin et al.
(2018) noted this bat could occur in the north, east, and
southeast of Iraq.

15—Family: Vespertilionidae

Myotis emarginatus (E. Geoffroy 1806). Species distribution: Hazar Mard caves (Bate 1930; Hatt
1959); Diyana and near Baradost (Sanborn 1940; Harrison
Common English name: Geoffroy’s Myotis. and Bates 1991).

IUCN status: Vulnerable. Notes: Arlettaz et al. (1997) provided a zoogeographical

map of Myotis blythii’s distribution range in Eurasia. The
map included North of Iraq (Mosul and Kurdistan) as prob-
able distribution sites of this species. Similarly, Al-Sheikhly
et al. (2015) noted that the range of Myotis blythii in Iraq
is restricted only to the caverns of northern mountains. On
the other hand, Battersby (2010) reported the occurrence of
Myotis blythii in the northeast, east, and southeast of Iraq.

17—Family: Vespertilionidae

Myotis capaccinii (Bonaparte 1837).

Common English name: Long-fingered Myotis.

Species distribution: Bjil village (Akre District, northern
Iraq) (Al-Sheikhly et al. 2015). IUCN status: Vulnerable.

13
A checklist of bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) from Iraq

distribution in the northeast of Iraq. In addition, Al-Sheikhly

et al. (2015) suggested that specimens studied by Rzebik-
Kowalska et al. (1978) could be representative of a distinct
taxon in Iraq based on differences in size and some cranio-
dental traits from other subspecies of M. nattereri.

19—Family: Miniopteridae

Miniopterus pallidus (Thomas 1907).

Common English name: Pale bent-winged Bat.

IUCN status: Not evaluated.

Species distribution: ruined city of Kish (Sanborn 1956;

Hatt 1959; Harrison 1964; Harrison and Bates 1991; Bedair
et al. 2006); Haditha (Matskasi 1980; Muhammed and Kagei
1990); Southern marshes of Al-Hammar and Al-Hawizeh
(Partow 2001; Ghadiri 2006).

Notes: Used to be an endemic species in the southern

marshes. Partow (2001) and Ghadiri (2006) listed this bat
among the most highly threatened mammal species in the
Iraqi marshlands. According to Al-Sheikhly et al. (2015),
distribution of M. capaccinii is undefined in Iraq.

18—Family: Vespertilionidae

Myotis nattereri (Kuhl 1817). Species distribution: Ser Amadiya (Harrison 1956, 1964;
Harrison and Bates 1991); Kurdistan (Lewis and Harrison
Common English name: Natterer’s bat, Natterer’s myotis. 1962); east, northeast, and southeast of Iraq (Furman et al.
2009).
IUCN status: Least concern.
Notes: This bat is a cave dweller and it can be found sharing
its roost with Myotis blythii, Rhinolophus ferrumequinum, R.
euryle and R. mehelyi (Mehdizadeh et al. 2019). Hatt (1959),
Harrison and Bates (1991) included this species in their list
of bats in Iraq as Miniopterus schreibersii (Kuhl 1817). Until
recently, M. pallidus was considered a subspecies of Mini-
opterus schreibersii. However, molecular genetic divergence
in addition to the clear differences in size, wing shape, and
echolocation calls suggested that M. pallidus should be con-
sidered a full species (Furman et al. 2010). According to Al-
Sheikhly et al. (2015), distribution of Miniopterus pallidus
in Iraq is uncertain and is restricted to the mountain caves
of the extreme northern Iraq.
Species distribution: Gali Ali Beg (Rzebik-Kowalska et al.
1978; Harrison and Bates 1991).

Notes: According to Al-Sheikhly et al. (2015), distribution

of Myotis nattereri in Iraq is limited to the rocky caverns of
the mountains of northern Iraq while Taylor (2019) noted its
occurrence in woodland and open habitats and reported its

13
 M. K. Mensoor
Conclusion
The current paper listed 19 bat species in Iraq. These spe-
cies have been recorded in most of the 18 Iraqi provinces.
This checklist of bats is urgently required to support any
future initiative aimed at the conservation of threatened
bats fauna in Iraq. Bats represent over 20% of wild mam-
mals in Iraq. However, there is still grave concern over the
decline in their numbers. The most important factor that
could threaten the biodiversity of bat species in Iraq is the
loss of their habitat due to urbanization and moderniza-
tion. In addition, natural predators of bats such as snakes,
hawks, and owls play a key role in decreasing numbers of
bats in Iraq.
Acknowledgements  I would like to thank Dr. P. Benda of the Czech
Natural History Museum for his thoughtful comments on the manu-
script. I am also grateful to Dr. Matskási István of the Hungarian Natu-
ral History Museum for his assistance with some resources. Special
thanks to the reviewers for providing helpful corrections that improved
this paper.
Funding  This research received no specific grant from any funding
agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
Compliance with ethical standards  evolutionary and taxonomical aspects of the E. serotinus species
Conflict of interest  The author declares that there is no conflict of in-
terest.
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