Researchers discover new species of extinct Hawaiian bat

Researchers have unearthed a new species of fossilized ancient bat on a Hawaiian Island, bringing the number of known land mammals native to Hawaii to two.

Prior to the discovery of the new species, the only known land mammal native to Hawaii was the hoary bat. But after analyzing the fossils of the new species, the researchers concluded that the new bat species dubbed Synemporion keana lived alongside the hoary bat.

The two species lived and flourished alongside each other before becoming extinct just before humans’ arrival on the chain of the isolated islands. Some researchers are of the view that humans’ arrival might have forced the species into extinction thousands of years ago.

Study author Nancy Simmons, a curator-in-charge of Department of Mammalogy at the American Museum of Natural History, called the discovery a “surprise.”

Speaking on the topic, Simmons said, “The only mammals that we've known to be native to Hawaii are a monk seal, which is primarily aquatic, and the hoary bat. So finding that there actually was a different bat--a second native land mammal for the islands--living there for such a long period of time was quite a surprise.”

The remains of Synemporion keana were first discovered in lava more than three decades ago, but researchers couldn’t determine that it was a distinct species until recently.

The discovery of the new mammal native to the Hawaiian Islands appeared in the journal American Museum Novitates.