Comparative Anatomy and General Histology of Tongues of Long-Nosed Bats (Leptonycteris sanborni and L. nivalis) with Reference to Infestation of Oral Mites

Anatomically and histologically, tongues of two species of long-nosed bats, Leptonycteris sanborni and L. nivalis, are generally similar. The tongue in each species is highly adapted for pollen- and nectar-feeding, which is characteristic of glossophagine bats. Differences in the singly-pointed papillae located along the lateral and dorsolateral surfaces were studied in detail by means of histological techniques and the scanning electron microscope. It was concluded that differences in these papillae may well account for the absence of oral mites (Radfordiella oricola: Macronyssidae) in the oral cavity of L. sanborni.