NEW FINDING OF A COLONY OF HIBERNATING HORSESHOE BATS (RHINOLOPHUS FERRUMEQUINUM SCHREB., 1774 AND RHINOLOPHUS BOCHARICUS KAST. ET AKIM., 1917) IN THE KURAMA MOUNTAIN RANGE IN TAJIKISTAN 

Tadzhibaeva Dilbar Ergashovna, Researcher, Institute of Natural Sciences, Khujand State University named after academician B. Gafurov (1 Mavlonbekova lane, Khujand, the Republic of Tajikistan),  dil.tadzhibaeva@gmail.com
Khabilov Tolibjon Kadyrovich, Doctor of biological sciences, professor, director of the Institute of Natural Sciences, Khujand State University named after academician B. Gafurov (1 Mavlonbekova lane, Khujand, the Republic of Tajikistan), tk.khabilov@gmail.com

599.4 [575.31]

10.21685/2307-9150-2017-1-4

Background. Horseshoe bats of Central Asia, particularly in Tajikistan, are scarcely studied, and findings of their hibernating colonies have been very rare until the present times. The aim of this work is to compile the author’s data and literature on findings of large hibernating colonies of horseshoe bats in Central Asia and Tajikistan.
Materials and methods. Materials for this work were obtained from literature and during many years of field research in northern Tajikistan by the authors.
Results. Until the present time, in Central Asia there have been found only three big hibernating colonies of horseshoe bats Rhinolophus ferrumequinum Schreb., 1774 and Rhinolophus bocharicus Kast. et Akim., 1917. The first hibernating colony was found in a cave near Samarkand [1] on December 7th, 1953. The colony of both species counted more than one thousand horseshoe bats. The second hibernating colony was found on December 23rd, 1978 [2] in the Kurama mountain range near Altyn-Topkan at the altitude of 1,550 m above the sea level, consisting of 1000 horseshoe bats located in an abandoned mine. On February 15th, 1980 in this mine, repeatedly, there were observed 1200–1300 horseshoe bats, which were located in the same place – 250 meters from the entrance. The third finding was made by the authors on January 7th, 2016, in an adit located near Altyn-Topkan, in Poi-Bulok to the right of the road, at the altitude of 1240 m above the sea level. Here the authors found about 700 of large and bukhara horseshoe bats.
Conclusions. In the course of the research in the Jurama mountain range near Altyn-Topkan the authors found a new large colony of hibernating horseshoe bats. The researchers marked some ecological features of their hibernation, in particular, it has been revealed that the hibernation usually ends in February depending on the course of spring.

horseshoe bats, Rhinolophus ferrumequinum, Rhinolophus bocharicus, hibernation, Kurama mountain range, Tajikistan

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