Hammer-headed Fruit Bat

Open encyclopedia reference

The hammer-headed bat (Hypsignathus monstrosus), also known as hammer-headed fruit bat, big-lipped bat, and hammerhead bat, is a megabat widely distributed in West and Central Africa. It is the only member of the genus Hypsignathus, which is part of the tribe Epomophorini along with four other genera. It is the largest bat in continental Africa, with wingspans approaching 1 m (3.3 ft), and males are almost twice as heavy as females. Males and females also greatly differ in appearance, making it the most sexually dimorphic bat species in the world. These differences include several adaptations that help males produce and amplify their voice; the males' larynges (vocal cords) are about three times as large as those of females, and they have large resonating chambers on their faces. Females appear more like a typical megabat, with fox-like faces. The hammer-headed bat is frugivorous, consuming a variety of fruit such as figs, bananas, and mangoes, though a few instances of carnivory have been noted.

Wikipedia contributors, Hammer-headed bat; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T10:11:08.489896+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Hypsignathus monstrosus H. Allen, 1861

Name authority

H. Allen, 1861

Common name

Hammer-headed Fruit Bat

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Mammalia

Order

Chiroptera

Family

Pteropodidae

Genus

Hypsignathus

Extinction status

Recorded extant

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
9. subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
10. infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
11. orderChiroptera Blumenbach, 1779
12. suborderYinpterochiroptera Springer, Teeling, Madsen, Stanhope & Jong, 2001
13. familyPteropodidae Gray, 1821
14. subfamilyRousettinae Andersen, 1912
15. tribeEpomophorini Gray, 1866
16. genusHypsignathus H. Allen, 1861
17. speciesHypsignathus monstrosus H. Allen, 1861

Close classified relatives

No other member of this genus is present in the selected snapshot.

Browse 158 records assigned to Pteropodidae.

Documented distribution

Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

1. Allen, & Harrison. (1861). Descriptions of new pteropine bats from Africa. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, Vol. 13. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:3P3V2. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.