Diversity and Abundance of Roadkilled Bats in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest

Lucas Damásio,Laís Amorim Ferreira,Aureo Banhos,Alexandre Rosa Dos Santos,Vinícius Teixeira Pimenta,Helena Godoy Bergallo,Albert David Ditchfield,Greiciane Gaburro Paneto

doi:10.3390/d13070335

Lucas Damásio, Laís Amorim Ferreira + Show 6 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/d13070335

Copy DOI

Abstract

Faunal mortality from roadkill has a negative impact on global biodiversity, and bats are among the roadkilled animals. In South America, the Atlantic Forest covers southeastern Brazil, a region which sustains a large bat diversity. In this biome, the Sooretama reserves are crossed by the federal highway BR-101, one of the busiest in Brazil. We analyzed bats roadkilled along the 25 km stretch of highway that crosses the Sooretama reserves. Data were collected between the years 2010 and 2015. In total, 773 individuals distributed among 47 bat species were roadkilled during this period. The insectivorous feeding guild was the most affected, accounting for 25 species and 74% of the recorded roadkill, and those flying in the open area were the most frequently roadkilled (41.9%). Bat mortality rates did not differ between months of the year. However, the relation between rainy days and roadkill was negative. Monitoring by foot was more efficient than by car for detection of bat carcasses. Radars with a speed limit below 60 km/h reduced the rates of roadkill. The diversity of deceased bats found in this study represents 40% of the known species in the Atlantic Forest, and is the largest among current studies of species killed on highways globally. The present study raises concerns about the high diversity and abundance of roadkilled insectivorous bats and the conservation of these animals in the Neotropical region.

Highlights

Roads and highways are considerable threats to biodiversity conservation, contributing to habitat loss, chemical and noise pollution, fragmenting landscapes, movement and dispersal restrictions of organisms [1,2,3,4], gene flow reduction [5,6], and increasing risk of population extinctions
In the Neotropical region, for example, despite the high diversity of bats [30,31,32,33], few studies show the impact of highways on bats, and those that related to roadkilled bats were performed in Brazil [8]
Sooretama reserves form one of the largest remnants of the Tabuleiro Forest, an associated type of ecosystem of the Atlantic Forest, that consists of lowland forest intersected by wide and shallow valleys with tabuleiro forests as the dominant vegetation, with lesser enclaves of mussununga and native grassland [44]

Summary

Introduction

Roads and highways are considerable threats to biodiversity conservation, contributing to habitat loss, chemical and noise pollution, fragmenting landscapes, movement and dispersal restrictions of organisms [1,2,3,4], gene flow reduction [5,6], and increasing risk of population extinctions. The most evident impact of highways on animals is through roadkill, which directly reduces wild populations [3], exceeding mortality caused by hunting or habitat loss [1]. There is a high diversity of bats globally, with at least 1386 described species [9], there are still few studies about the impact of highways on these animals [8]. In the Neotropical region, for example, despite the high diversity of bats [30,31,32,33], few studies show the impact of highways on bats, and those that related to roadkilled bats were performed in Brazil [8]

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion