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Guest blog post by Manfredo A. Turcios-Casco, José G. Martínez-Fonseca, and Bruce Miller
Honduras has officially documented, for the first time, the presence of Cormura brevirostris—a little-known bat species from the Emballonuridae family, recognizable by a unique vocal pattern of three short calls that rise in frequency. The discovery was made through acoustic monitoring in the remote La Moskitia region of eastern Honduras, an area with historically limited research on bats.
The confirmation comes from two field expeditions carried out between December 2024 and May 2025 in the community of Mavita and within the Warunta Conservation Area, both located in the department of Gracias a Dios. These sites form a mosaic of forests, river corridors, and natural clearings that support specialized and disturbance-sensitive wildlife.
Unlike traditional methods that rely on capturing bats, the identification of Cormura brevirostris was achieved solely through its vocalizations. The acoustic signatures recorded in the field showed clear and consistent patterns that distinguish the species from other bats in the region, allowing for confident confirmation through manual review and comparison with verified acoustic libraries.
During the early stages of processing, some automated systems misidentified the calls as belonging to the genus Molossus. A more detailed examination of call characteristics corrected these misclassifications and verified the presence of Cormura brevirostris. This finding highlights both the power of acoustic monitoring and the importance of expert validation, as automated models alone can produce misleading results.
C. brevirostris is the only species in its genus and is believed to be primarily crepuscular, favoring forest edges and open spaces within lowland tropical rainforest environments. Although past distribution maps and regional checklists hinted at the species’ potential occurrence in Honduras, no confirmed records existed until now.
This new record expands the known range of the species by more than 160 km to the north and raises the number of bat species documented in Honduras to 115. Beyond its scientific significance, the discovery showcases acoustic monitoring as a valuable tool for detecting rare or elusive species in remote, understudied landscapes.
The finding was made possible thanks to collaboration between researchers, conservation organizations, and local communities. In Mavita, the involvement of the Miskitu community and the Apu Pauni project—focused on protecting forests and emblematic wildlife such as the scarlet macaw—has indirectly contributed to the conservation of other species, including bats. The study was supported by the Biodiverse Landscapes Fund (BLF), the Protected Areas and Wildlife Fund (FAPVS), the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), and local partners.
The results highlight the importance of strengthening scientific research and community-based conservation in La Moskitia, a strategic region within the Mesoamerican Great Forests, currently threatened by deforestation, illegal cattle ranching, and wildlife trafficking.
Research article:
Turcios-Casco MA, Martínez-Fonseca JG, Miller B (2025) Listening northward: first evidence of Cormura brevirostris (Wagner, 1843) (Emballonuridae, Chiroptera) in Honduras. Check List 21(6): 1262-1270. https://doi.org/10.15560/21.6.1262