Belongs within: Chiroptera.
The Natalidae are a family of bats found in tropical and subtropical South and Central America. The genera Chilonatalus and Natalus possess distinctively funnel-shaped ears and elongate legs, though these features are absent in Nyctiellus. Chilonatalus species have ridge-like outgrowths on the muzzle and chin, as well as a large glandular swelling on the forehead of males (Miller 1907).
Characters (from Miller 1907): Humerus with trochiter nearly as large as trochin and projecting noticeably farther beyond head, its surface of articulation with scapula nearly half as large as glenoid fossa and very definitely outlined, epitrochlea well developed, but short and thick, with broad spinous process, capitellum distinctly out of line with shaft; second manal digit with fully developed metacarpal but no phalanges; third finger with two phalanges; shoulder girdle normal in structure, but presternum relatively large and strong, its width equal to length of presternum and mesosternum together, its keel slanting backward ; mesosternum very narrow, its keel much higher than its width posteriorly; xiphisternum scarcely longer than broad, its keel low but distinct; foot normal; fibula thread-like, usually cartilaginous at its upper extremity, which extends to head of tibia; pelvis essentially normal, but ilia unusually expanded laterally and dorsal and ventral profiles of ossa innominata more nearly parallel than in any other bats except the Rhinolophidae and Hipposideridae, sacrum with boundaries of vertebrae nearly or quite effaced, though general form of bone not peculiar; vertebrae from last dorsal to antepenultimate lumbar fused into a solid, laterally compressed mass from which all boundaries of the original elements are obliterated, last two lumbar vertebrae free; skull without postorbital processes; premaxillaries complete, the slender palatal branches fused in median line, leaving two small, lateral foramina and a slight anterior emargination; teeth normal; tragus present, variously distorted and thickened; muzzle without nose leaf in adult, though a structure resembling a rudimentary leaf has been described as occurring in the fetus of Natalus; chin occasionally with ridge-like outgrowths.
<==Natalidae [Natalinae, Natalini, Natalinia, Nataloidea, Nycticellina] | i. s.: HonrovitsMJ11 | Ageina Russell, Louis & Savage 1973GJ03, RLS73 | `--*A. tobieni Russell, Louis & Savage 1973RLS73 |--Chilonatalus Miller 1898FS15, C57 | |--*C. micropus [=Natalus (*Chilonatalus) micropus]M07 | |--C. brevimanusM07 | `--C. tumidifronsM07 `--+--Nyctiellus Gervais 1855FS15, M07 [=Nycticellus Gray 1866M07] | `--*N. lepidus [=Vespertilio lepidus]M07 `--Natalus Gray 1838FS15, C57 [=Natalis Winge 1892C57; incl. Phodotes Miller 1906C57, Spectrellum Gervais 1856C57] | i. s.: N. lepidusIT07 | N. tumidifronsIT07 |--+--*N. stramineus Gray 1838C57, FS15, C57 (see below for synonymy) | `--N. lanatusFS15 `--+--N. tumidirostrisFS15 [=*Phodotes tumidirostrisM07] | |--N. t. tumidirostrisC57 | `--N. t. continentis (Thomas 1911) [=Phodotes tumidirostris continentis]C57 `--+--N. espiritosantensisFS15 |--N. jamaicensisFS15 |--N. majorFS15 |--N. mexicanus Miller 1902FS15, MB86 | |--N. m. mexicanusM-M01 [=N. stramineus mexicanusMB86] | `--N. m. saturatusM-M01 [=N. stramineus saturatusG69] `--N. primusFS15
*Natalus stramineus Gray 1838C57, FS15, C57 [incl. *Spectrellum macrurum Gervais 1856M07, C57, Vespertilio splendidus Wagner 1845C57]
*Type species of generic name indicated
References
[C57] Cabrera, A. 1957. Catalogo de los mamiferos de America del Sur. I (Metatheria—Unguiculata—Carnivora). Revista del Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales “Bernardino Rivadavia” e Instituto Nacional de Investigacion de Las Ciencias Naturales, Ciencias Zoológicas 4 (1): 1–307.
[FS15] Faurby, S., & J.-C. Svenning. 2015. A species-level phylogeny of all extant and late Quaternary extinct mammals using a novel heuristic-hierarchical Bayesian approach. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 84: 14–26.
[G69] Goodwin, G. G. 1969. Mammals from the State of Oaxaca, Mexico, in the American Museum of Natural History. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 141 (1): 1–269, 40 pls.
[GJ03] Gunnell, G. F., B. F. Jacobs, P. S. Herendeen, J. J. Head, E. Kowalski, C. P. Msuya, F. A. Mizambwa, T. Harrison, J. Habersetzer & G. Storch. 2003. Oldest placental mammal from sub-Saharan Africa: Eocene microbat from Tazania—evidence for early evolution of sophisticated echolocation. Palaeontologica Electronica 5 (3). http://palaeo_electronica.org/paleo/2002_2/africa/issue2_02.htm.
[IT07] Isaac, N. J. B., S. T. Turvey, B. Collen, C. Waterman & J. E. M. Baillie. 2007. Mammals on the EDGE: conservation priorities based on threat and phylogeny. PloS One 2 (3): e296.
[MB86] Matson, J. O. & R. H. Baker. 1986. Mammals of Zacatecas. Special Publications, Museum of Texas Tech University 24: 1–88.
[MJ11] Meredith, R. W., J. E. Janečka, J. Gatesy, O. A. Ryder, C. A. Fisher, E. C. Teeling, A. Goodbla, E. Eizirik, T. L. L. Simão, T. Stadler, D. L. Rabosky, R. L. Honeycutt, J. J. Flynn, C. M. Ingram, C. Steiner, T. L. Williams, T. J. Robinson, A. Burk-Herrick, M. Westerman, N. A. Ayoub, M. S. Springer & W. J. Murphy. 2011. Impacts of the Cretaceous terrestrial revolution and KPg extinction on mammal diversification. Science 334: 521–524.
[M07] Miller, G. S., Jr. 1907. The families and genera of bats. Smithsonian Institution, United States National Museum, Bulletin 57: i–xvii, 1–282, pls 1–14.
[M-M01] Morales-Malacara, J. B. 2001. New morphological analysis of the bat wing mites of the genus Periglischrus (Acari: Spinturnicidae). In: Halliday, R. B., D. E. Walter, H. C. Proctor, R. A. Norton & M. J. Colloff (eds) Acarology: Proceedings of the 10th International Congress pp. 185–195. CSIRO Publishing: Melbourne.
[RLS73] Russell, D. E., P. Louis & D. E. Savage. 1973. Chiroptera and Dermoptera of the French early Eocene. University of California Publications in Geological Sciences 95: 1–57.