Morphological and molecular confirmation of the common pipistrelle bat, Pipistrellus pipistrellus Schreber, 1774 (Vespertilionidae: Chiroptera), in Xinjiang, China

Abstract Species identification is pivotal in taxonomy, systematics, evolutionary biology and conservation biology. We collected bats that died of natural causes in Shihezi city, Xinjiang, China, and carried out morphological and genetic identification. Morphologically, all individuals were adults/subadults or juveniles of Pipistrellus pipistrellus . We found one haplotype for the mitochondrial gene ND1 and five for the mitochondrial gene cytochrome b (Cyt b ) among six specimens. Phylogenetically, all the Cyt b sequences grouped with P. pipistrellus . We confirm this species’ occurrence in Xinjiang, China.