Still not a primate, Microcebus, is now basal to bats

Yesterday the traditional primate,
Microcebus (Fig. 1 right), untraditionally nested just outside the Primates in the large reptile tree (LRT, 2082 taxa, subset Fig 3), at the base of a bat + tree shrew + dermopteran clade called Volitantia. Pteropus, the flying fox (Fig 1 left) and Onychonycteris (Fig. 2) are clade members.

Today tree shrews and dermopterans move out,
shifting closer to the gnawing clade in the LRT (Fig 3). Neither have large canines, similar to members of the gnawing clade. This is distinct from mouse lemurs, bats and primates, so that phylogenetic shift makes sense and is supported by additional scores from snout to rump.

In the most recent basal placental subset of the LRT
(Fig 3) Microcebus nests at the very base of the bat clade (amber). This clade is a sister to the primate clade. That may be why primitive Microcebus is traditionally considered the smallest known primate. Linneaus 1758 recognized the similarity of bats and primates. Others (e.g. Pettigrew et al. 1989) have proposed similar hypotheses. The LRT nests bats, primates, dermopterans, tree shrews, shrews, rodents and multituberculates close to one another, sharing an unknown last common ancestor similar to Microcebus likely in the Early Jurassic.

Basal bats are even smaller than mouse lemurs.
So phylogenetic miniaturization helped create basal bats from Microcebus-like ancestors.

The omnivorous bat + primate clade
is the sister clade to the increasingly herbivorous clade of gnawing taxa (Fig 3). These clades are sisters to the insectivorous to piscivorous clade of anagalids + odontocetes (blue). All these are derived from omnivorous pre-Carnvora (= basal placentals) in the LRT.

This latest edit of the LRT
narrows the gap between the basalmost bats and their most proximal non-volant outgroup, the mouse lemur, Microcebus. That means, at present the mouse lemur provides the best model for how pre-bats evolved, lived, behaved, reproduced, sounded, hibernated, etc.

See how many of these Microcebus traits remind you of bats:
The eyes are large, typical of nocturnal mammals.
The mouse lemur forages alone, but sleeps in groups, sharing tree holes during the day.
Mostly insectivorous, plus small reptiles, frogs, plants, leaves, fruits and flowers.
Habitat: dense tropical forests.
Twin babies are typical and are carried in the mother’s mouth after birth, prior to weaning.
Offspring can reproduce after one year with a lifespan of ten years.
Pteropus and Microcebus have similar eyes, faces, nostrils (Fig 1).

Genetics
Both the mouse lemur (Microcebus) and the unrelated aye-aye (Daubentonia) live in Madagascar along with many dozen lemur species. That’s why their genes, affected by endemic deep time viruses, align with those of lemurs.

The LRT is always under scrutiny
especially so as new taxa are added. Scores from years ago get a review every so often. It’s an ongoing process. The present changes seem to make sense. Let me know if you notice any problems, omissions, etc.

This appears to be a novel hypothesis of interrelationships.
If not, please provide a prior citation so I can promote it here.

References
Linnaeus C 1758. Systema naturæ per regna tria naturæ, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata.
Miller JF 1777. Cimelia Physica p.25
Pettigrew JD, Jamieson BGM, Robson SK, Hall LS, McAnally KI and Cooper HM 1989.
Phylogenetic Relations Between Microbats, Megabats and Primates (Mammalia: Chiroptera and Primates. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences 325 (1229): 489-559.
David Attenborough meets a mouse lemur video.

wiki/Microcebus
wiki/Flying_primate_hypothesis