2006-09-10 12:58:42 · 4 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Biology
Literally, the name breaks down like this:
Pteropus: Ptero means wing.
Pus is probabably from lagopus, a species of fox.
(Lupus is latin for wolf)
Polio is from Greek, meaning Gray.
Cephalus means head.
So, while they are named "gray headed flying fox" the name does not really break down that way. The species was named in 1799, and at the time they were not refered to as 'flying foxes'. So it would be a mistake to think that the binominal nomenclature will bread down to the common name of the animal.
2006-09-10 22:07:16 · answer #1 · answered by RjKardo 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Pteropus poliocephalus is the largest bat in Australia. As with all members of Pteropodidae, P. poliocephalus does not have a tail, and claws are present on the first and second digits. They do not echolocate, and therefore, the distinctive enlarged tragus or leaf-ornamentation found in most species of Microchiroptera is not present. Since they do not echolocate, they must rely on their large eyes for navigation and finding food.
As the species' common name implies, grey-headed flying-foxes have faces which are fox-like. The body is dark grey, with the fur on the head being of a lighter color grey. There is also a reddish-brown collar of fur that encircles the neck. Fur on the legs extends all the way to the ankle, which is one distinguishing characteristic from other members of the genus Pteropus. The patagium is black, and it is possible for the wingspan of some individuals to be up to one meter. The head and body length is between 230 and 289 mm, with an average of 253 mm. The forearm length is between 138 and 180 mm, with an average of 161 mm. Weight generally varies between 600 and 1000 g, with an average of 677 g. However, some individuals have been recorded as weighing more than 1 kg. These figures are somewhat different according to different sources, but they are generally within a few units of each other. These bats have a basal metabolic rate of approximately 3.162 cm^3 oxygen/h.
2006-09-10 16:29:51 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Roderic K has it mostly right, except that the pus
part of Pteropus is probably from pous, a word
meaning foot. So Pteropus would mean wingfoot,
an appropriate name for a bat in which the wing is
the modified anterior leg.
2006-09-11 04:42:39 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes, the 'pus' part means foot ... as in octopus
2006-09-16 03:32:19 · answer #4 · answered by myrtguy 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋