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From: davidh@uhunix1.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (David A. Helweg)
Newsgroups: sci.bio
Subject: Re: Bats by a Mile
Summary: bat phylogeny
Keywords: bats, lemurs, primates
Message-ID: <13132@uhccux.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu>
Date: 21 May 91 07:42:09 GMT
References: <1991May17.044756.26698@ddsw1.MCS.COM> <82025@bu.edu>
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Organization: University of Hawaii
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>tropics both Microchiroptera and Megachiroptera exist.  At some point in
>the not too distant past (maybe 2-3 years ago, in Science) researchers
>concluded that the Megachiroptera species were actually more closely
>related to Primates than to Microchiropteran bats!  How about that, true
>flying primates!!!

Eisenberg (_Mammalian Radiations_) classes bats with primates, as he felt
that flying lemurs seemed a likely bridge between bats and prosimians.  What
I find interesting is that Microchiroptera (insect eating echolocating bats)
have smaller EQ than Megachiroptera (frugivorous nonecholocating bats).  I'd
guess that if I had to make up an adaptationist tale, then I would guess that
the cognitive demands of remembering food locations for frugivores exceed that
of echolocation performance.

dah