The type locality is at the Wilson River near Mt Margaret in Queensland, where the collector, also named Wilson, obtained the bat. An earlier observation had been noted by Robert Austin in 1854 at Mount Kenneth while surveying the inland regions of Western Australia. Studies of brain structures indicate that "Macroderma gigas" is an intermediate and divergent species of the insectivorous microchiropterans and the carnivorous species from South America. Common names that refer to "Macroderma gigas" have included ghost bat, false vampire, false vampire bat, and Australian false vampire bat. The name ghost bat derives from its distinct colouring, the predominant colour of its fur may be near white or pale grey. A larger species of microchiropterans (microbats) and the largest in Australia, the size is comparable the megabat species (flying fox, fruitbat). The fur colour is grey, ranging in tone from mid, sometimes dark, to very pale grey at the back and whitish at the ventral side and head, The colour of populations is a geographic cline, becoming darker toward the coastal regions. A ring at the eye is dark. and colour of the wing membranes and other bare skin is pale and brownish. The interfemoral membrane extends the wing surface between the length of the legs. The great length of the ear, from notch at head to tip, is 44 to 56 millimetres and they are fluted in form; the inner margins of the ears are fused for half their length. The length of the prominent ears is twice that of the head, a seam at the inner margins stiffens these to keep them upright while in flight. Other measurements of the species are a 96 to 112 mm range for the forearm length, 98 to 120 mm for the combined length of the head and body, and a weight range of 75 to 145 grams, averaging as 105 g across the sampled specimens. The eyes are comparatively large and well developed for nocturnal vision, a feature shared with the long-eared genera "Nyctophilus". The nose-leaf is also large and prominent, and simple in form. The nasal appendage is presumably similar in usage to the elaborate forms of the horse-shoe and leaf-nosed bat genera, manipulating, directing and receiving echolocation signals to detect prey. The lack of a tail, effectively absent, is a characteristic of the species. The membrane at the rear is, however, supported by a calcar at the ankle.