Actividad nocturna y uso del espacio vertical en algunas especies de murciélagos frugívoros (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae) en Venezuela

In any ecosystem, fruits are resources that vary in time and space as well as in nutritional content. Coexistence of species from a trophic guild depends on the division and use of resources. Therefore, the organisms that depend on them as a food source, tend to show a certain degree of specialization. This way, understanding the factors that influence the dynamics of seed dispersal is important for the regeneration and conservation of tropical ecosystems. Our aim was to determine variation in consumption of Piper tuberculatum by fruit bat assemblages in the village of Robles (Jamundí, Valle del Cauca, Colombia). P. tuberculatum is a resource used not only by wildlife but also by people in the village of Robles. Bats were captured in mist nets between June and November 2014, their feces were collected, and the length of the forearm, wing area, leg length and mass were recorded. At the Universidad del Valle seed laboratory, fecal samples were washed, and their content determined. Of the 14 species captured, Sturnira lilium, Carollia brevicauda, Carollia perspicillata and Artibeus lituratus showed signs of having consumed P. tuberculatum. Sturnira lilium was the main consumer of P. tuberculatum fruits, with the greatest number of consumption events of fruit from this plant species, whereas the other bats showed more diversified consumption events. The greatest niche overlap was recorded between C. brevicauda and C. perspicillata, species that showed similar sizes (i.e., wing area and forearm length) followed by S. lilium and C. perspicillata. In contrast, A. lituratus showed the least niche overlap with the other three fruit bats captured. In conclusion, Sturnira lilium showed an interaction Sturnira-Piper, which is the result of low Solanum availability, and this bat species was the largest consumer of P. tuberculatum in the region.

Bats

Effects of reduced impact logging on bat biodiversity in terra firme forest of lowland Amazonia

We evaluated the structure of a community of frugivorous bats using composition and abundance patterns, niche amplitude and food overlap of these animals in four Atlantic Forest fragments, each one exposed to different conservation realities. For twelve months, we captured six bat species and found the seeds of 13 species of pioneering plants in 158 fecal samples. The most abundant bat species were Artibeus planirostris (25.4%), Artibeus lituratus (24.1%) and Carollia perspicillata (23.9%). Only one fragment (Fazenda Unida), the most conserved area, exhibited a significantly different composition and abundance of species. We found low trophic niche amplitude values (<0.60), associated to high food overlaps. Our results suggest that bats can adjust their foraging strategy to deal with food availability variations. By favoring pioneering plant species, the fragmentation process noted of the studied areas creates an attractive environment for bats more tolerant to this type of disturbance. The sampled areas represent important secondary forest remnants in southern Brazil that require attention to avoid an even greater loss of bat diversity.

Introduction: Reproduction is a critical phase for most living organisms and in bats the reproductive strategies exhibit considerable complexity and variability. Objective: In this paper, we describe the reproductive patterns and population dynamics of seven bat species (Artibeus toltecus, Carollia perspicillata, Glossophaga soricina, Mormoops megalophylla, Pteronotus davyi, Pteronotus parnellii and Natalus stramineus) that roost in a mine (La Mina) and two caves (El Apanguito and Cerro Huatulco) found in the municipalities of Pluma Hidalgo and Santa Maria Huatulco, in the State of Oaxaca, in southeastern México. Methods: Sampling was conducted once a month from July 2016 to June 2017. Results: A total of 5 836 bats were captured, tagged and, released, including 14 species, 10 genera, and five families. The most abundant species were Pteronotus davyi and P. parnellii, representing 41.01 % and 32.34 % of the captures, respectively. Artibeus toltecus, Carollia perspicillata, and Glossophaga soricina showed seasonal bimodal polyoestry without a postpartum oestrus pattern, whereas Mormoops megalophylla, Natalus stramineus, Pteronotus davyi, and Pteronotus parnellii showed a restricted seasonal monoestrous pattern. Conclusions: The reproductive activity of each species seems to be synchronized with the beginning of the rainy season. Future studies should consider aspects of vaginal cytology and include environmental factors to better understand the relationship of certain factors with the onset of reproductive activity of neotropical bat species.

Environmental conditions, including anthropogenic disturbance, can significantly alter host and parasite communities. Yet, our current knowledge is based mainly on endoparasites, while ectoparasites remain little studied. We studied the indirect effects of anthropogenic disturbance (human population density) and climate (temperature, precipitation and elevation) on abundance of highly host-specific bat flies in four Neotropical bat species across 43 localities in Venezuela. We formulated a set of 11 a priori hypotheses that included a combination of the two effectors and host species. Statistically, each of these hypotheses was represented by a zero-inflated negative binomial mixture model, allowing us to control for excess zeros in the data. The best model was selected using Akaike's information criteria. Fly abundance was affected by anthropogenic disturbance in Artibeus planirostris, Carollia perspicillata and Pteronotus parnellii, but not Desmodus rotundus. Climate affected fly abundance in all bat species, suggesting mediation of these effects via the host or by direct effects on flies. We conclude that human disturbance may play a role in shaping bat-bat fly interactions. Different processes could determine fly abundance in the different bat species.

A ordem Chiroptera é a segunda maior em riqueza de mamíferos no Brasil e a Mata Atlântica é o bioma com o melhor estado de conhecimento para esse grupo. Em Sergipe, estudos sobre quirópteros ainda são escassos, sendo necessário ampliar as pesquisas com esses animais. O presente trabalho teve como objetivo realizar o inventário de morcegos do Refúgio de Vida Silvestre Mata do Junco (RVSMJ), segunda maior reserva de Mata Atlântica do estado de Sergipe. As coletas foram realizadas durante duas noites por mês, entre fevereiro de 2011 a fevereiro de 2012, exceto junho. Com um esforço de captura de 21.168 m².h foram registrados 189 indivíduos de duas famílias e 14 espécies. Destas, Artibeus planirostris, Chiroderma doriae, Myotis nigricans, Phyllostomus discolor, Trachops cirrhosus e Trinycteris nicefori correspondem a novas ocorrências para a localidade, sendo T. nicefori novo registro para o estado. Phyllostomidae foi a família com maior riqueza e abundância e A. lituratus (N = 67), Carollia perspicillata (N = 45) e Dermanura cinerea (N = 45) foram as espécies mais abundantes. Essas três espécies juntas representam 83,0% dos indivíduos capturados; sendo caracterizadas como generalistas no uso do habitat e dieta. Com relação às guildas alimentares, a maioria das espécies é frugívora (57,1%), devido a metodologia e existência de áreas agrícolas presentes no RVSMJ. O registro de novas espécies para a localidade, juntamente com os parâmetros obtidos de riqueza, abundância e guilda alimentar, contribuem para o aumento do conhecimento dos quirópteros em Sergipe e podem servir de base para estratégias de conservação e manejo dessa área.

This study constitutes the first record of parasitism and associations between bat flies ectoparasite of the Streblidae family and bats (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae) in the São Francisco Forest State Park (SFFSP). The bats were captured using mist nets set up at various points along the park’s visitor trail. Following collection, the bats were inspected for ectoparasites, which when found were collected with metal tweezers and stored in vials with 70% alcohol to be identified later. The captured bats were subjected to morphometrics so that the information obtained could help identify which bat species was the host of the ectoparasite collected and then they were released. A total of 36 dipterans from the Streblidae family belonging to six species from four genera: Aspidoptera falcata Wenzel, 1976; Aspidoptera phyllostomatis (Perty, 1833); Megistopoda aranea (Coquillett, 1899); Megistopoda proxima (Séguy, 1926); Paratrichobius longicrus (Miranda Ribeiro, 1907) and Trichobius. joblingi Wenzel, 1966, infesting phyllostomids of four species: Artibeus lituratus (Olfers, 1818); Artibeus planirostris (Spix, 1823); Carollia perspicillata (Linneaus, 1758) and Sturnira lilium (E. Geoffroy, 1810). The most abundant species were Trichobius joblingi (38.89%) and Aspidoptera phyllostomatis (27.78%).

In the vast Neotropic seasonal environment, the most diverse family of bats, the Phyllostomidae (leaf-nosed bats), includes up to 93 species. As the quality and quantity of food resources fluctuate in the habitats, diet heterogeneity is observed among bat species and regions of the Neotropics. In this study, we investigated by faecal analyses, how the dietary niche (DN) of eight Phyllostomidae bat species (Artibeus planirostris, A. fimbriatus, Carollia brevicauda, C. perspicillata, Chiroderma villosum, Glossophaga soricina, Platyrrhinus lineatus, and Sturnira lilium) that occur in a karstic area in the Midwest region of Minas Gerais, Brazil, change in response to seasonal food availability. We recorded the consumption of insects and nine plant families. Moraceae was the most frequent, followed by Piperaceae. Given that seasonal dietary changes can be subtle and hardly noticeable along with fluctuating habitat conditions, we performed the DN decomposition of the eight bats species into subniches, by analysing the data with the WitOMI, which is a decomposition of the niche into temporal subniches. By improving the accuracy and details of the results, we assessed the effects of abiotic (precipitation and environmental temperature) and biotic (quantity and quality of food resources) interactions within the phyllostomid bat community. For each species, we compared niche breadth and overlap and found higher values for the dry season among morphologically similar species. The results of our study suggest that ecologically similar bat species coexist occupying different DNs.

Ultrasonics of eight species of infant bats are described and related to adaptations of precocial and altricial conditions at birth. Species include Antrozous pallidus, Eptesicus fuscus, Myotis lucifugus, Leptonycteris sanborni, Carollia perspicillata, Phyllostomus hastatus, Macrotus californicus , and Molossus ater . Newborn Antrozous and Eptesicus are relatively immature; they emit but one type of vocalization; eyes and ears are closed; the body is naked. This condition is termed altricial. Newborn Carollia and Macrotus are relatively mature; they emit more than one type of vocalization; eyes and ears are open; the body is covered with fur. This condition is termed precocial. Newborns of most species of bats (that is Myotis, Leptonycteris, Phyllostomus , and Molossus ) probably fall somewhere between precocial and altricial; these are termed intermediate.

Models of optimal foraging often separate the time and energy expended in getting to a feeding area (commuting costs) from the time and energy expended in searching for food (search costs) in animals that are "pure searchers." We predict that under certain circumstances (e.g., a relatively uniform resource distribution) searching and commuting behavior will be synchronous, whereas under other circumstances (e.g., a relatively patchy resource distribution) these two behaviors will be temporally separated. We have tested these predictions by studying the foraging and food location behavior of several species of Costa Rican frugivorous bats using mist—netting programs, radiotelemetry, and fruit relocation experiments. Concurrent observations were made on the phenology and distribution patterns of the six fruit species used in the relocation experiments. The mist—netting program allowed us to determine the food habits of the common frugivorous bats in our study area and to identify the major chiropteran dispersal agents of the six fruit species. The radio—tracking program provided detailed information on the foraging behavior of one of the most important seed dispersal agents, Carollia perspicillata, whose individuals commute up to 2.7 km from a central day roost before beginning to feed. Results of the fruit relocation experiments, in which ripe fruits of the six species were individually placed on "fruits poles" located either close to or at a considerable distance (>0.5 km) away from conspecific plants in areas known to be used by bats, indicated the following: (1) fruits of two species of Piper, which are highly preferred by Carollia and which occur in low nightly densities for extended periods of time, has as high (°.90) a probability of being found away from conspecific plants as when they were near conspecifics; (2) fruits of two species of Ficus and Muntingia calabura, which are very patchily distributed in time and/or space, has a significantly higher probability (.30—.50 vs. .02—.12) of being found near rather than away from conspecifics; and (3) when placed on poles with Piper fruits, fruits of Ficus ovalis, Chlorophora tinctoria, and Muntingia calbura had a significantly higher probability (.40—.60 vs. .08—.13) of being found than when placed in similar areas without Piper fruits. These results indicate that certain bats (e.g., Carollia perspicillata and Glossophaga soricina) are constantly "on the alert" for ripe Piper fruits while commuting, whereas bats that eat Ficus, Chlorophora, or Muntingia fruits (e.g., G. soricina or Arbibeus jamaicensis) are not constantly "on the alert" for these fruits while commuting. Bats feeding on Piper probably search and commute simultaneously, whereas those feeding on Ficus or Muntingia separate commuting and searching behavior. The food location behavior of frugivorous bats appears to be highly responsive to differences in the spatiotemporal distribution patterns of their food resources.

Thirty-six of the 70 species of bats known from Belize were recorded from the area around Lamanai, Orange Walk County: two in roosts and 34 in about 680 mist net hours that produced 560 captures. Day roosts used by 35 of the species were located using radio-tracking (Sturnira lilium, Platyrrhinus helleri, Centurio senex and Bauerus dubiaquercus) or general searching for roosts (Rhynchonycteris naso, Saccopteryx bilineata, Saccopteryx leptura, Dicli durus albus, Mimon bennettii, Micronycteris schmidtorum, Carollia brevicauda, Carollia perspicillata and Eptesicus furinalis). Data on the day roosts of 23 other species were determined from the literature. Most species reported from Lamanai (19) roosted in hollows, while others used foliage (6), tents (3), sheltered sites (2), crevices (2), open sites (1), and a few species used more than one type of day roost (hollows and crevices (1); hollows and foliage (1); hollows, foliage and tents (1)). The fauna consisted of 13 aerial foragers, 9 gleaners, 11 fruit/leaf eaters, one trawler, one flower-visitor and one blood-feeder. In day roost use and foraging behaviour, the Lamanai fauna did not differ significantly from that of Paracou, French Guiana, but both these locations differed from the bat fauna of Kruger National Park, South Africa, in foraging behaviour.

ABSTRACT: The habitat fragmentation modifies the pattern of animal activity. This study aimed to determine the activity pattern of frugivorous bat species in an urban forest fragment in southwestern Amazonia. The study was conducted from August 2013 to September 2014 with 10 mist nets (9m x 2.5m), opened at ground level throughout all the night and totaling 64,800 m².hour/net. Two hundred and sixty-one captures of bats from 28 species were recorded. The period with the highest capture rate and species of bats was the first period of the night (until 00:00). The species with the highest incidence of catches were, in ascending order, Carollia brevicauda (Schinz, 1821), Carollia perpicillata (Linnaeus, 1758), Artibeus planirostris (Spix, 1823), and Artibeus lituratus (Olfers, 1818). The species of Carollia had activity peaks between the first four hours after sunset; they also showed a reduction of its activities during the subsequent hours. The bats of the genus Artibeus presented a pattern of bimodal activity and they do not seem to respond to the effects of fragmentation, since the pattern of bimodal activity was described for studies in fragments and continuous forest. Thus, we suggest that Artibeus has a high adaptive plasticity, and it is able to exploit the resources offered by the environment. Meanwhile, Carollia has two peaks of activity in continuous forest areas, probably this pattern of activity may be related to the spatial distribution of the resources used by these animals.

To relate differences in phenological strategies of a group of closely related plants to biotic (pollinators, dispersers) and abiotic (water, light) factors, we studied leafing, flowering, and fruiting phenology of 12 species of Piper (Piperaceae) in a neotropical lowland forest in Panama for 28 months. We asked how Piper may partition time and vertebrate frugivores to minimize possible competition for dispersal agents. Based on habitat preferences and physiological characteristics we discriminate between forest Piper species (eight species) and gap Piper species (four species). Forest Piper species flowered synchronously mostly at the end of the dry season. Gap Piper species had broader or multiple flowering peaks distributed throughout the year with a trend towards the wet season. Both groups of Piper species showed continuous fruit production. Fruiting peaks of forest Piper species were short and staggered. Gap Piper species had extended fruiting seasons with multiple or broad peaks. Both groups of Piper species also differed in their time of ripening and disperser spectrum. Forest Piper species ripened in late afternoon and had a narrow spectrum consisting mainly of two species of frugivorous bats: Carollia perspicillata and C. castanea (Phyllostomidae) . Fruits of gap Piper species, in contrast, ripened early in the morning and were eaten by a broader range of diurnal and nocturnal visitors, including bats, birds, and ants. We conclude that the differences in flowering phenology of forest and gap Piper species are primarily caused by abiotic factors, particularly the availability of water and light, whereas differences in fruiting patterns are mostly influenced by biotic factors. The staggered fruiting pattern of forest Piper species may reflect competition for a limited spectrum of dispersers. The long and overlapping fruiting periods of gap Piper species are associated with a larger spectrum of dispersers and may be a strategy to overcome the difficulty of seed dispersal into spatially unpredictable germination sites with suitable light conditions.

Journal Article Effects of Weather on Habitat Selection and Behavior of Mallards Wintering in Nebraska Get access Dennis G. Jorde, Dennis G. Jorde U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, North Dakota 58401 Present address of first author: College of Forest Resources, 240 Nutting Hall, University of Maine, Orono, Maine 04469 Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Gary L. Krapu, Gary L. Krapu U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, North Dakota 58401 Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Richard D. Crawford, Richard D. Crawford U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, North Dakota 58401 Address of third author: Department of Biology, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, North Dakota 58202 Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Miriam A. Hay Miriam A. Hay U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, North Dakota 58401 Present address of fourth author: Route I, Box 302B, Buffalo, Minnesota 55313 Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar The Condor, Volume 86, Issue 3, 1 August 1984, Pages 258–265, https://doi.org/10.2307/1366993 Published: 01 August 1984 Article history Received: 23 May 1983 Accepted: 20 January 1984 Published: 01 August 1984