为揭示中华山蝠翼的形态学发育模式,2012-2014年,通过对50只中华山蝠幼蝠进行人工饲养实验观察及测量,辅以野外标志重捕,研究中华山蝠翼的生长。结果显示:中华山蝠翼外形各量度值先直线增长,后增长速度逐渐减慢。各指标增长速度减慢的日龄各不相同,臂膜长在25日龄生长速度逐渐减慢;翼展、翼面积、臂膜面积在30日龄增长速度减慢;掌膜长及掌膜面积则在40日龄增长速度减慢。臂膜长发育最快,试飞前(28日龄)已达到成体臂膜长的80.9%。翼载在幼蝠14日龄内呈直线增长,然后开始直线下降,到试飞期(35日龄左右),翼载值降到最低,是成体翼载的80.0%,此后呈极缓慢增长趋势。中华山蝠翼的生长主要集中在试飞前。试飞后,则通过减缓体重的增长速度甚至减轻体重,保持翼面积尤其是掌膜面积的增长速度,从而降低翼载,以便更快地适应飞行生活。Logistic,Von Bertalanffy和Gompertz 3种非线性曲线中,Gompertz模型对翼展拟合度最佳,Gompertz和Von Bertalanffy模型对翼面积拟合度优于Logistic曲线。
Postnatal changes in wing morphology were studied in Chinese noctule (Nyctalus plancyi) from 2012 to 2014. Wing measurements increased linearly in the early postnatal growth period, and then the rate of growth decreased. The growth rate of arm-wings length decreased at the age of 25 days while the growth rate of wingspan, area of wing and arm- wing decreased at the age of 30 days. The hand-wings length and hand-wings area showed linear growth until 40 days of age. The length of arm-wings developed fastest and reached 80. 9% of adult' s value at the age of 28 days. The wing load- ing of new born pups was ( 16.27 ±2.46) N/m2, which increased linearly to a maximum of ( 18.55 ±2. 92) N/m2 at 14 days of age, and thereafter decreased to a minimum of 80. 0% of adult' s wing loading at 35 days of age. The observations on flight showed that at the age of 15 -30 days the young were able to flutter their wings; at the age of 30 -40 days they flew for a short distance and at the age of 40 - 50 days they exhibited sustained flight. The results imphed that the wing of N. plancyi developed fast before they exhibited clumsy flight, thereafter, the young bats slowed down the growth rate of body mass and wing loading to obtain sustained flight quickly. Of the three nonlinear growth models ( Logistic, Gompertz, and von Bertalanffy), the Gompertz equation provided the best fit to the empirical curves for wingspan. The Gompertz and Von Bertalanffy equations both fitted the postnatal changes in wing area better than the Logistic equation.