Foraging strategies, craniodental traits and interaction in the bite force of Neotropical frugivorous bats (Phyllostomidae: Stenodermatinae)

1. Bats in the family Phyllostomidae exhibit great diversity in skull size and morphology that reflects the degree of resource division and ecological overlap in the group. In particular, the subfamily Stenodermatinae has high morphological diversification associated with cranial and mandibular traits that is associated with the ability to consume the full range of available fruits (soft and hard).

2. Was analyzed craniodental traits and their relationship to the bite force in 343 specimens distributed in seven species of stenodermatine bats with two foraging strategies: nomadic and sedentary frugivory. We evaluated 19 traits related to feeding and bite force in live animals by correcting bite force with body size.

3. We used a generalized linear model (GLM) and post hoc tests to determine possible relationships and differences between cranial traits, species, and sex. We also used Blomberg's K to measure the phylogenetic signal and Phylogenetic generalized least-squares (PGLS) to...