Neoeptesicus Cláudio & Novaes & Gardner & Nogueira & Wilson & Maldonado & Oliveira & Moratelli 2023, gen. nov.

Neoeptesicus gen. nov. https://zoobank.org/ 1D855992-1B95-467D-93B4-3EC478240212 Eptesicus Rafinesque, 1820: 2 ; part. Adelonycteris H. Allen, 1892: 466 ; part; replacement name for Vesperus Keyserling & Blasius, 1839 , preoccupied. Type species: Vespertilio innoxius Gervais, 1841. Other species: Neoeptesicus brasiliensis (Desmarest, 1819); N. furinalis (d’Orbigny & Gervais, 1847); N. andinus (Allen, 1914); N. diminutus (Osgood, 1915); N. chiriquinus (Thomas, 1920); N. taddeii (Miranda, Bernardi & Passos, 2006); N. ulapesensis (Sánchez et al., 2019); N. langeri (Acosta et al., 2021); and N. orinocensis (RamÍrez-Chaves et al., 2021). Distribution: Neoeptesicus is a Neotropical genus, widely distributed across South America, and Central America. In Central America it is restricted to the southern mainland, with only the species Neoeptesicus furinalis and N. brasiliensis ranging northward into Mexico. Diagnosis: Neoeptesicus can be distinguished by the following characters: ears short ( 21 mm (21–39 mm, usually> 25 mm); in Neoeptesicus and Eptesicus ears are comparatively reduced, 10 mm (10–20 mm); in Neoeptesicus and Eptesicus the tragus is smooth and short,> 12 mm (4.8–12 mm); there is no overlap when the length of tragus is analyzed together with ear and forearm length. The ears in Histiotus are connected by a membrane of variable development, while in Neoeptesicus and Eptesicus this membrane is absent. Eyes in Histiotus are larger than nostrils and lower canines, and smaller or about the same size as nostrils or canines in Neoeptesicus and Eptesicus. The skull in Histiotus is narrow and long (mean value of GLS / BAM = 2.7) when compared to Neoeptesicus and Eptesicus (mean value of GLS / BAM = 2.3); the auditory bullae are comparatively twice as large in Histiotus than in Neoeptesicus and Eptesicus; and Histiotus has a well-developed postorbital process of the jugal, which is weakly developed in Neoeptesicus and Eptesicus. The morphologically similar genera Neoeptesicus and Eptesicus can be distinguished using the following set of characters: length of dorsal fur, usually> 10 mm in Eptesicus and 8 mm in Eptesicus and 42 mm in Eptesicus, and usually 17 mm in Eptesicus and usually