Editing Megabat (section)

===Appearance===
[[File:Mariana Fruit Bat.jpg|thumb|upright|alt=A bat with black fur viewed in profile from the back. It has a bright yellow mantle of fur on the back of its neck.|Contrasting yellow mantle of the [[Mariana fruit bat]] (''Pteropus mariannus'')]]
Megabats take their name from their larger weight and size; the largest, the [[great flying fox]] (''Pteropus neohibernicus''), weighs up to {{cvt|1.6|kg|lb}};<ref>{{cite book| last=Flannery| first= T.| year=1995| title=Mammals of the South-West Pacific & Moluccan Islands| pages= 271| isbn=0801431506| publisher=Cornell University Press}}</ref> some members of ''Acerodon'' and ''Pteropus'' have wingspans reaching up to {{cvt|1.7|m|ft}}.<ref name="Nowak 1994"/>{{rp|p=48}} Despite the fact that body size was a defining characteristic that Dobson used to separate microbats and megabats, not all species of megabat are larger than microbats; the [[spotted-winged fruit bat]] (''Balionycteris maculata''), a megabat, weighs only {{cvt|14.2|g|oz}}.<ref name="Hutcheon 2004">{{cite journal|doi=10.1023/B:JOMM.0000047340.25620.89|title=Are Megabats Big?|journal=[[Journal of Mammalian Evolution]]|volume=11|issue=3/4|pages=257–277|year=2004|last1=Hutcheon|first1=J. M.|last2=Garland|first2=T. Jr.|s2cid=11528722}}</ref> The flying foxes of ''Pteropus'' and ''[[Acerodon]]'' are often taken as exemplars of the whole family in terms of body size. In reality, these genera are outliers, creating a misconception of the true size of most megabat species.<ref name="Hutcheon 2006"/> A 2004 review stated that 28% of megabat species weigh less than {{cvt|50|g|oz}}.<ref name="Hutcheon 2004"/>

Megabats can be distinguished from microbats in appearance by their dog-like faces, by the presence of claws on the second digit (see [[Megabat#Postcrania]]), and by their simple ears.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Geist| first1= V.| first2= D. G.| last2= Kleiman| first3= M. C.| last3= McDade| title= Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia Mammals II| volume= 13| edition= 2nd| publisher=[[Gale (publisher)|Gale]]| year= 2004|page=309}}</ref> The simple appearance of the ear is due in part to the lack of [[tragus (ear)|tragi]] (cartilage flaps projecting in front of the ear canal), which are found in many microbat species. Megabats of the genus ''[[Nyctimene (genus)|Nyctimene]]'' appear less dog-like, with shorter faces and tubular nostrils.<ref name="Nelson"/> A 2011 study of 167 megabat species found that while the majority (63%) have fur that is a uniform color, other patterns are seen in this family. These include [[countershading]] in four percent of species, a neck band or mantle in five percent of species, stripes in ten percent of species, and spots in nineteen percent of species.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0025845|pmid=21991371|pmc=3185059|title=Roosting Ecology and the Evolution of Pelage Markings in Bats|journal=[[PLOS One]]|volume=6|issue=10|page=e25845|year=2011|last1=Santana|first1=S. E.|last2=Dial|first2=T. O.|last3=Eiting|first3=T. P.|last4=Alfaro|first4=M. E.|bibcode=2011PLoSO...625845S|doi-access=free}}</ref>

Unlike microbats, megabats have a greatly reduced [[interfemoral membrane|uropatagium]], which is an expanse of flight membrane that runs between the hind limbs.<ref name="Hall"/> Additionally, the tail is absent or greatly reduced,<ref name="Nelson"/> with the exception of ''Notopteris'' species, which have a long tail.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1071/AM03013|title=Electrophoretic studies of the systematic and biogeographic relationships of the Fijian bat genera Pteropus, Pteralopex, Chaerephon and Notopteris|journal=[[Australian Mammalogy]]|volume=25|page=13|year=2003|last1=Ingleby|first1=S.|last2=Colgan|first2=D.|doi-access=free}}</ref> Most megabat wings insert laterally (attach to the body directly at the sides). In ''[[Dobsonia]]'' species, the wings attach nearer the spine, giving them the common name of "bare-backed" or "naked-backed" fruit bats.<ref name="Hall"/>