Rousettus aegyptiacus | UAE National Red List of Mammals: Marine and Terrestrial

Taxa
Rousettus aegyptiacus | (É. Geoffroy, 1810)
Publication
UAE National Red List of Mammals: Marine and Terrestrial
Location
Countries in Assessment
United Arab Emirates
Country ISO code(s)
ARE
Does the assessment cover a marine EEZ area(s)?
Off
Scope (Assessment)
National
Taxon
Taxonomic Group
Vertebrates
Taxonomic Group Level 2
Mammals
Assessed taxon level
Species
Taxonomic Notes
The taxonomic relationship with Rousettus leschenaultii requires further review. Two geographically isolated subspecies of R. aegyptiacus occur in sub-Saharan Africa (Monadjem et al. 2010). Both subspecies occur in the southern African region: unicolor (Gray, 1870) in Angola and leachii (A. Smith, 1829) in the rest of the region (Monadjem et al. 2010). Additional subspecies: princeps is endemic to Principe Island in the Gulf of Guinea and tomensis is endemic to Sao Tome (Korine 2016).
Taxon distribution as listed in assessment
There are two records from Abu Dhabi city and many more from the northern emirates and the Hajar Mountains and adjacent areas (Judas et al. 2018), and this species may well occur in intervening areas where suitable habitat such as fruit plantations exists. Recorded sites include Al Ain, the Fujairah coast, Sharjah, and Hatta (Dubai), on farms outside the protected area. Globally, the species is distributed across most of Africa, through the Middle East to Turkey, Iran and Pakistan (Korine 2016). It is quite widely distributed in the Arabian Peninsula (Harrison and Bates 1991).
Habitats and Ecology
Ecological system type
Terrestrial system
No
Freshwater system
No
Marine system
No
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
Roosts in caves and rock crevices and feeds in date plantations, orchards and gardens (Judas et al. 2018).
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Assessed status
Asessment status in full
Least concern
Assessment status abreviation
LC
Assessment rationale/justification
The species appears to be moderately common in eastern parts of the UAE, and may be increasing as a result of the expansion of fruit tree cultivation. It is assessed as Least Concern because it is fairly widespread, with an expanding range and population, due to the planting of fruit trees, and no major threats are known. No regional adjustment is made to the Least Concern assessment.
About the assessment
Assessment year
2018
Assessors/contributors/reviewers listed
UAE National Red List Workshop
Affliation of assessor(s)/contributors/reviewers listed on assessment
Government
IGO
Assessor affiliation specific
Government|IGO
Criteria system
Criteria system specifics
IUCN v3.1
Criteria system used
IUCN
Criteria Citation
IUCN. 2012. IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria: Version 3.1, Second edition. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK. iv + 32pp pp. And IUCN. 2012. Guidelines for Application of IUCN Red List Criteria at Regional and National Levels: Version 4.0. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK: IUCN. iii + 41pp.
URL (link) of redlist assessment or publication
https://www.moccae.gov.ae/assets/download/b352eff1/UNRL%20of%20Mammals%20-%20Report%202019.pdf.aspx?view=true
Endemism
Endemic to region
Not_assigned
Endemism Notes
Is an endemic?: Not_assigned
Conservation
Threats listed in assessment
No major threats are known, but there are some cases of poisoning.
Conservation Measures

Conservation measures:
Conservation measures notes:
Required conservation measures:

Further information
History
Whilst the species was assessed as Vulnerable for the UAE (Hornby 1996), we consider that the species would have also been Least Concern in 1996.
Scientific Name Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family Genus
Rousettus aegyptiacus Animalia Chordata Mammalia Chiroptera Pteropodidae Rousettus