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Background  The Commerson’s leaf-nosed bat,  Hipposideros commersoni  sensu stricto, is endemic to Madagascar and is relatively common in the western portion of the island, where it is found in areas, including forested zones, from sea level to 1325 m. A previous study on morphological patterns of geographic variation within the species highlighted the presence of two distinct morphotypes; larger individuals in the north portion of the island and smaller individuals in the south. The main aim of this study was to use a combination of craniodental morphology and molecular data (mitochondrial and nuclear) to test previous hypotheses based on morphology and clarify the evolutionary history of the species group.    Methods  We sequenced mitochondrial and nuclear genes from  Hipposideros commersoni  obtained from the western portion of Madagascar, and compared them with other African species as outgroups. We analyzed the sequence data using Maximum Likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic inference. Divergence dates were estimated using Bayesian molecular clock approach. Variation in craniodental variables was also assessed from sequenced individuals.    Results  The molecular analyses suggest that  H. commersoni  is not monophyletic, with strong support for the presence of several independently evolving lineages. Two individuals amongst those sequenced from Isalo (south central) and Itampolo (southwest) form a separate clade (Clade A), distinct from other  H. commersoni , and sister to continental African  H. vittatus  and  H. gigas.  Within the  H. commersoni  clade, the molecular data support two geographically distributed clades; one from the south (Clade B) and the other from the north (Clade C), which diverged approximately 3.38 million years ago. Morphometric data were consistent with the molecular analyses, suggesting a north–south break within  H. commersoni . However, at some localities, animals from both clades occurred in sympatry and these individuals could not be differentiated based on external and craniodental measurements.    Conclusions  Using a combination of molecular and morphological characters, this study presents evidence of cryptic diversity in  H. commersoni  on Madagascar. Further fine-scale phylogeographic studies are needed to fully resolve the systematics of  H. commersoni . This study highlights the utility of the combined approach in employing both morphological and molecular data to provide insights into the evolutionary history of Malagasy population currently assigned to  H. commersoni .    Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12862-015-0510-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Cryptic diversity in Hipposideros commersoni sensu stricto (Chiroptera: Hipposideridae) in the western portion of Madagascar