Overview

Hipposideros caffer – (Sundevall, 1846)

ANIMALIA – CHORDATA – MAMMALIA – CHIROPTERA – HIPPOSIDERIDAE – Hipposideros – caffer 

Common Names: Sundevall’s Leaf-nosed Bat, Common African Leaf-nosed Bat, Lesser Leaf-nosed bat, Cape Leaf-nosed bat, Sundevall’s Roundleaf Bat, Sundevall’s African Leaf-nosed Bat, South African Lesser Leaf-nosed Bat (English), Sundevall se bladneusvlermuis, Sundevall-bladneusvlermuis, Sundevall se blaarneusvlermuis, Kaapse Blaarneusvlermuis (Afrikaans) 

Synonyms:  Rhinolophus caffer Sundevall, 1846; Phyllorrhina gracilis (W. C. H. Peters, 1851); Phyllorrhina patellifera (W. C. H. Peters, 1852) [not used as valid]; bicornis (von Heuglin, 1861); Phyllorrhina angolensis (de Seabra, 1898), Hipposideros nanus J. A. Allen in J. A. Allen, Lang, & Chapin, 1917; Hipposideros caffer aurantiacus De Beaux, 1924 (ACR 2024, Mammal Diversity Database 2025) 

Taxonomic Note: 
This species was historically listed under the family Rhinolophidae. Taxonomic revision is required as Hipposideros caffer is considered a species complex (Vallo et al. 2008; Monadjem et al. 2013; Patterson et al. 2020). Three subspecies have been listed by Simmons (2005), including: H. c. angolensis Seabra, 1898; H. c. nanus J.A. Allen, 1917; and H. c. tephrus Cabrera, 1906. Vallo et al. (2008) recognises several species lineages within the caffer-ruber complex throughout Africa, and assign southern African populations to H. c. caffer following Meester et al. (1986). The H. caffer 4 lineage comprise specimens from Eswatini, Mozambique and the type locality South Africa, thus it is probable that this lineage represents the true species (Patterson et al. 2020). The presence of multiple cryptic species in this caffer-ruber complex is supported by Monadjem et al. (2013), Patterson et al. (2020). Integrative taxonomic studies in combination with enhanced molecular data are required to resolve the taxonomy of this species complex and confirm the status of populations within the assessment region. 

Red List Status: LC – Least Concern, (IUCN version 3.1) 

Assessment Information

Assessors: Richards, L.R.¹ & da Silva, J.M.² 

Reviewer: Smith, C.³ 

Institutions: ¹Durban Natural Science Museum, ²South African National Biodiversity Institute, ³Endangered Wildlife Trust 

Previous Assessors and Reviewers: Monadjem, A., Jacobs, D., Cohen, L., Richards, L.R., Schoeman, C., Sethusa, T. & Taylor, P. 

Previous Contributors: Roxburgh, L., Raimondo, D., Nicholson, S. & Relton, C. 

Assessment Rationale 

Sundevall’s Leaf-nosed Bat is listed as Least Concern as it is widely distributed across the northern and eastern regions of the assessment region, and it is inferred to have a large population. The species has an addition of new occurrence records, and no major threats have been identified that could cause extensive population declines. It can utilise manmade structures as roosting sites (both day and night roosts). As in the case of other chiropteran species, protecting and limiting disturbance to key roost sites will benefit this species. 

Regional population effects: The distribution records for this species are continuous between the northeastern section of the assessment region and Mozambique and Zimbabwe. Dispersal into and out of the assessment region is suspected to be ongoing. 

Reasons for Change 

Reason(s) for Change in Red List Category from the Previous Assessment: No change 

Red List Index 

Red List Index: No change 

Recommended citation: Richards LR & da Silva JM. 2025. A conservation assessment of Hipposideros caffer. In Patel T, Smith C, Roxburgh L, da Silva JM & Raimondo D, editors. The Red List of Mammals of South Africa, Eswatini and Lesotho. South African National Biodiversity Institute and Endangered Wildlife Trust, South Africa.

Regional Distribution and occurrence

Geographic Range 

Sundevall’s Leaf-nosed Bat has an extensive distribution across sub-Saharan Africa and the south-western Arabian Peninsula (ACR 2024, Mammal Diversity Database 2025). In Africa, there is an isolated population in Morocco, and their distribution extends from Senegal eastwards to Sudan and Ethiopia, southwards into Kenya and Tanzania, but are absent from the central dense forest areas. Their distribution continues southwards along the eastern and western regions of southern Africa, but this is restricted to the nominate H. c. caffer lineage (Vallo et al. 2008; Patterson et al. 2020). Disjunct populations have been recorded in northern and southern Namibia and Botswana, but they are widespread across Zimbabwe and Mozambique. Within the assessment region, the species occurs in KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, and the northern areas of the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, as well as in Eswatini (Skinner & Chimimba 2005; Monadjem et al. 2020). The type specimen is from Durban, South Africa (BM 1848.6.2.16, Syntype) (Monadjem et al. 2020). The species may be underrepresented in acoustic surveys as their high frequency echolocation calls rapidly attenuate (Monadjem et al. 2017). The species has an EOO of 403,688 km².

Elevation / Depth / Depth Zones 

Elevation Lower Limit (in metres above sea level): 3 m asl (Monadjem et al. 2024) 

Elevation Upper Limit (in metres above sea level): 3,869 m asl (Monadjem et al. 2024) 

Depth Lower Limit (in metres below sea level): N/A 

Depth Upper Limit (in metres below sea level): N/A 

Depth Zone: (Not specified) 

Map

Figure 1. Distribution records for Sundevall’s Leaf-nosed Bat (Hipposideros caffer) within the assessment region (South Africa, Eswatini and Lesotho). Note that distribution data is obtained from multiple sources and records have not all been individually verified.

Biogeographic Realms 

Biogeographic Realm: Afrotropical, Palearctic 

Occurrence 

Countries of Occurrence 

Large Marine Ecosystems (LME) Occurrence 

Large Marine Ecosystems: (Not specified) 

FAO Area Occurrence 

FAO Marine Areas: (Not specified) 

Climate change

No formal studies have been conducted on the potential impacts of climate change on the species. Despite this limitation, it is presumed that increasing temperatures, coupled with erratic rainfall patterns and increased drought, will likely impact the species distribution, as seen elsewhere (Adams and Hayes 2008).  

Population Information

Sundevall’s Leaf-nosed Bat is considered a common species, with colonies in the hundreds reported within the assessment region and it is well represented in museums with over 900 specimens examined in Monadjem et al. (2020). The species is extremely gregarious, and forms colonies ranging from less than a dozen to huge colonies of more than 1,000 individuals where there is adequate roosting space (Kock et al. 2008; Monadjem et al. 2020). Occasionally, males may roost solitarily (Monadjem et al. 2020; De Jong et al. 2025). 

Current population trend: Stable 

Continuing decline in mature individuals? None reported 

All individuals in one subpopulation: Uncertain, however see population genetic section 

Number of subpopulations: 1 (sensu Patterson et al. 2020) 

Extreme fluctuations in the number of subpopulations: Not suspected 

Continuing decline in number of subpopulations: No 

Number of mature individuals in largest subpopulation: >500 

Severely fragmented: No 

Quantitative Analysis 

Probability of extinction in the wild within 3 generations or 10 years, whichever is longer, maximum 100 years: (Unlikely 

Probability of extinction in the wild within 5 generations or 20 years, whichever is longer, maximum 100 years: Unlikely 

Probability of extinction in the wild within 100 years: Unlikely 

Population Genetics

According to recent phylogenetic studies aimed at uncovering cryptic diversity within the Hipposideros caffer complex using mitochondrial and nuclear DNA markers (Patterson et al. 2020; Baldwin et al. 2021), individuals within the assessment region form a distinct clade with other individuals from Eswatini and Mozambique (H. Caffer 4: Patterson et al. 2020), which appears to more broadly extend to individuals from Kenya and Senegal (Baldwin et al. 2021). Due to the limited sample sizes used in the studies, it is not possible to determine whether the Mozambique, Eswatini and South African bats exists as a separate ESU; however distinct haplotypes were detected between Mozambique and South Africa (Patterson et al. 2020), suggesting a closer examination of the population genetic structure would be beneficial. Considering this is a common, gregarious species, capable of dispersing fairly widely, it is likely that individuals within South Africa form a single metapopulation. Based on this assumption, the large number of colonies identified and the large size of several colonies (e.g. > 1000), population numbers are likely to greatly exceed 5000 individuals, which translates to an Ne > 500 for the species. 

Habitats and ecology

The species is generally associated with savannah, bushveld and/or coastal forests, near to rivers and other water sources (Taylor 2000). Nearby caves, sinkholes, rock fissures, hollow trees or cavities (including those created by humans, such as mines and culverts) are essential for roosting during the day (Happold 1987; Monadjem et al. 2020). Roosts are commonly shared with other species, including Nycteris thebaica in Eswatini (Monadjem et al. 2020). They are able to utilise man-made structures as roosting sites, having been found in disused sheds (De Jong et al. 2025) and within the wall of the Pongoloport (Jozini) Dam (L.R. Richards, pers obs). The species is a clutter-edge forager and feeds predominantly on Lepidoptera, with smaller quantities of Trichoptera and Coleoptera (Monadjem et al. 2020). It has low wing-loading (Monadjem et al. 2020).

This species exhibits seasonal breeding: in KwaZulu-Natal, copulation was found to take place in April, although embryonic development was delayed during winter until the end of September, and females gave birth to a single young in early December (Rautenbach 1997; Skinner & Chimimba 2005). Due to this seasonally delayed embryonic development, the gestation period of this species in KwaZulu-Natal was found to be nearly 100 days longer (~220 days) than populations from the tropics (Bernard & Meester 1982).

Ecosystem and cultural services: The species’ feeding ecology makes them important regulators of insect populations (Boyles et al. 2011; Kunz et al. 2011; Taylor et al. 2017). Bats particularly feed on species which damage crops, and agricultural areas with bats require less pesticides (Kunz et al. 2011). 

IUCN Habitats Classification Scheme 

Life History 

Generation Length: Unknown 

Age at Maturity: Female or unspecified: (Not specified) 

Age at Maturity: Male: (Not specified) 

Size at Maturity (in cms): Female: Mean forearm length = 4.79 ± 0.15 cm; mean total length = 8.26 ± 0.42 cm (Monadjem et al. 2020) 

Size at Maturity (in cms): Male:  Mean forearm length = 4.71 ± 0.16 cm; mean total length = 8.10 ± 0.59 cm (Monadjem et al. 2020 

Longevity: Unknown 

Average Reproductive Age: Unknown 

Maximum Size (in cms): Females forearm length = 5.10 cm; Males forearm length = 4.71 cm 

Size at Birth (in cms): Unknown 

Gestation Time: Unknown 

Reproductive Periodicity: Seasonal monoestry (Bernard & Meester 1982) 

Average Annual Fecundity or Litter Size: One  

Natural Mortality: (Not specified) 

Breeding Strategy 

Does the species lay eggs? No 

Does the species give birth to live young: Yes 

Does the species exhibit parthenogenesis: No 

Does the species have a free-living larval stage? No 

Does the species require water for breeding? No 

Movement Patterns 

Movement Patterns: Uncertain, however the low wing loading suggests limited dispersal capabilities. 

Congregatory: Can roost in colonies ranging from a handful of individuals to several thousand and may co-occur with other species (Wright 2009). 

Systems 

System: Terrestrial 

General Use and Trade Information

Not known to be utilised or traded in any form. 

Local Livelihood: None reported.  

National Commercial Value: May provide essential ecosystem services in the form pest insect population control, particularly pest moth species.  

International Commercial Value: May provide essential ecosystem services in the form pest insect population control in respect of exported produce.  

End Use: None reported 

Is there harvest from captive/cultivated sources of this species? None reported  

Harvest Trend Comments: N/A 

Threats

Human disturbance at roosting sites (such as religious ceremonies by local communities and cave tourism) has been highlighted as a threat to Sundevall’s Leaf-nosed Bat, although this is unlikely to cause significant declines of this species across its distribution. 

A recent initiative to physically close abandoned mines to prevent illegal mining operations is an emerging threat, as it reduces available roost sites and can cause a mass mortality event if bats are roosting at the time of closure. Or Recent developments by the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources to seal unused mine shafts from illegal miners could potentially cause mass mortality of this species.  

It is known to roost in hollows in baobab trees (Wright 2009); the recent announcement of the Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone (MMSEZ) project may displace and pose a potential threat to tree hollow-roosting colonies in the proposed area of development.  

Conservation

Although, no specific conservation measures are reported to be in place for this species, it is likely that it would benefit from protection of key roost sites. The species occurs in many protected areas throughout its range in the assessment region, including large reserves such as Kruger National Park, iSimangaliso Wetland Park, and Vhembe Biosphere Reserve (Monadjem et al. 2020; ACR 2024). The number of mature individuals appears to be in decline elsewhere in its range (Richards et al. 2020). 

Recommendations for land managers and practitioners: 

• Retain natural vegetation within mixed agricultural land-use areas to promote the presence of bats and the associated biological pest control services.  
• Reduce the use of pesticides in agricultural landscapes. 
• Do not disturb known day or night roosts.  
• Protection or restricted access to abandoned mines harbouring colonies.   

Research priorities: 

• Taxonomic resolution of the H. caffer-ruber species complex. 
• Long-term monitoring of known colonies to determine colony size and possible fluctuations.  

Encouraged citizen actions: 

• Citizens can assist the conservation of the species by reporting sightings on virtual museum platforms (for example, iNaturalist and MammalMAP) and therefore contribute to an understanding of the species distribution. 

Bibliography

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Baldwin, H.J., Vallo, P., Ruiz, A.T., Anti, P., Nkrumah, E.E., Badu, E.K., Oppong, S.K., Kalko, E.K., Tschapka, M. and Stow, A.J. 2021. Concordant patterns of genetic, acoustic, and morphological divergence in the West African Old World leaf‐nosed bats of the Hipposideros caffer complex. Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research, 59(6), pp.1390-1407.  

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