Disk-winged bats are a small group of bats of the family Thyropteridae and genus Thyroptera. They are found in Central and South America, usually in moist tropical rain forests. It is a very small family, consisting of a single genus with five extant and one fossil species.
The name comes from the suction cups found at the base of the thumb and under the heel of these animals, similar to those found in sucker-footed bats. These structures help them to cling smooth surfaces, and to remain, for example, inside young coiled banana, Heliconia, and prayer plant leaves, where they roost.
They can also be recognized by their reduced thumbs, which are enclosed by the wing membranes, and their funnel-shaped ears. They have brownish to black fur, and roost in small groups, or singly. They are insectivorous and can live in many different kinds of environments.
Taxonomy Family Thyropteridae Genus Thyroptera De Vivo's disk-winged bat, Thyroptera devivoiGREGORIN, R.; GONÇALVES, E.; LIM, B.K.; ENGSTROM, M.D. (2006). New species of disk-winged bat Thyroptera and range extension for T. discifera. Journal of Mammalogy 87 (2): 238-246. Peters's disk-winged bat, Thyroptera discifera LaVal's disk-winged bat, Thyroptera lavali Spix's disk-winged bat, Thyroptera tricolor Patricia's disk-winged bat, Thyroptera wynneaeVELAZCO, P.M.; GREGORIN, R.; VOSS, R.S.; SIMMONS, N.B. (2014). "Extraordinary Local Diversity of Disk-winged Bats (Thyropteridae: Thyroptera) in Northeastern Peru, with the Description of a New Species and Comments on Roosting Behavior". American Museum Novitates 3795: 28p. †Thyroptera robusta, Middle Miocene (Laventan) Honda Group, ColombiaThyroptera robusta at Fossilworks.org
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