Assessment of sexual dimorphism in Desmodus rotundus (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae), a rabies reservoir in Latin America

Abstract

Morphometric traits of a host have been used recently in disease ecology for a deeper understanding of the connection between phenotype and transmission rates. The common vampire bat, Desmodus rotundus, is the main reservoir of rabies in Latin America, one of the most lethal zoonotic diseases in the world. Comprehension of morphological variation in D. rotundus is insufficient, contradictory, and inconclusive. Due to this inconsistency, we explored sexual dimorphism in D. rotundus by combining different measures to provide new knowledge that can contribute to the control of rabies. As a result, our study provides evidence of sexual dimorphism in D. rotundus with females generally larger than males in body and wing measurements. The statistical, as well as the principal components, and clusters analysis, confirm morphological differences between females and males, without observing a complete separation between the sexes, possibly due to environmental factors that change the specimens conditions or limitations with access to measures. Understanding the sexual dimorphism of the main transmitter of wild rabies in South America is essential since morphological variations between sexes could influence both the use of the habitat and the dispersion capacity of the bats, which are relevant to the epidemiology of rabies. Because our data originated primarily from lowland areas, we are unable to rule out the effects of elevation on sex dimorphism. Given the importance of rabies for global public health, investigating the morphological and behavioral aspects of rabies reservoirs could help us better understand how ecological aspects influence disease spread.