A new species of Tube-nosed Bat (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae: ) from Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, China.

In 2018, an adult male of a small-sized Tube-nosed Bat (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae: ) was captured at an arid cave located on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in Yushu City, Qinghai Province, China. Despite external morphological similarities with those of and , the individual in question displays explicit craniodental differences that distinguish it from either species. Morphological and morphometric evidence, coupled with phylogenetic analyses utilizing the mitochondrial gene, confirmed that it represents a distinct and still unknown species of , described herewith as sp. nov. Our research highlights the importance of future surveys aimed at exploring cryptic species diversity in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and adjacent under-surveyed regions.