Pleistocene Bat Research Articles

Pleistocene Bats (Late Irvingtonian and Late Rancholabrean) from Nuckolls and Sherman Counties, Nebraska

We documented rare finds of fossil bats from two localities representing the Pleistocene epoch in southern and central Nebraska, Albert Ahrens locality (No-104, late Irvingtonian age, Middle Pleistocene), Nuckolls County, and Litchfield (Sm-102, late Rancholabrean age, latest Pleistocene), Sherman County. The Albert Ahrens local fauna with strong boreal influence yielded two bats, Lasiurus cf. borealis and Cf. Myotis sp. The Litchfield local fauna, also with a strong boreal influence, yielded two bats, Eptesicus fuscus and Cf. Myotis, among a diverse Pleistocene fauna of small vertebrates and pollen record indicating a boreal mixed conifer and deciduous woodland that contrasts with mixed grass prairies of the area in historic times prior to anthropogenic conversion. Vertebrate fauna from the Litchfield site can be assigned to the Rancholabrean land mammal age based on the presence of Bison, on faunal correlation, and on several extralimital taxa of small mammals. The fossil bat taxa are widespread in North America and still extant in Nebraska today; their glacial stage occurrences in a nonkarstic (caveless) region is consistent with previous interpretations of the Albert Ahrens and Litchfield local faunas as indicating cool equable climates and wooded parkland environments. These are the first bats to be reported from each of the respective paleofaunas.

Eptesicus nilssonii varangus subsp. nov. (Vespertilionidae, Chiroptera) from the Lower Pleistocene of the Taurida Cave in Crimea.

A new northern serotine bat Eptesicus nilssonii varangus subsp. nov. is described on the base of an incomplete skull and a mandibular fragment from the Lower Pleistocene deposits of the Taurida cave in the central Crimea. This is the earliest record of the species. The presence of E. nilssonii (Keyserling et Blasius, 1839) in the Early Pleistocene bat assemblage of the Taurida cave indicates that this species lived in the south of Eastern Europe before its spreading into Central and Southeastern Europe.

<i>EPTESICUS NILSSONII VARANGUS</i> SUBSP. NOV. (VESPERTILIONIDAE, CHIROPTERA) FROM THE LOWER PLEISTOCENE OF THE TAURIDA CAVE IN CRIMEA

A new northern serotine bat Eptesicus nilssonii varangus subsp. nov. is described on the base of an incomplete skull and a mandibular fragment from the Lower Pleistocene deposits of the Taurida cave in the central Crimea. This is the earliest record of the species. The presence of E. nilssonii (Keyserling et Blasius, 1839) in the Early Pleistocene bat assemblage of the Taurida cave indicates that this species lived in the south of Eastern Europe before its spreading into Central and Southeastern Europe.

Did humans disturb bats? Exploring the hominin-chiropter interactions in the Sierra de Atapuerca sites (early to Middle Pleistocene, Spain)

Fossil bats are common components of Pleistocene palaeontological cave-sites, sometimes appearing in levels with evidence of a human presence. As with other small vertebrates, variations observed in fossil bat palaeocommunities through a stratigraphic sequence may be correlated to palaeoclimatic and palaeoenvironmental fluctuations. As many bat species are typically cave-dwelling animals, however, the bat palaeocommunity may also be affected by hominin presence. The correlation between bat palaeocommunity dynamics and both climatic and anthropic factors is addressed in the present study by analysing their record along the Early and Middle Pleistocene sequence in the Sierra de Atapuerca. A marked deterioration in the Sierra de Atapuerca chiropter faunas occurred from 500 ka on simultaneously with a change in the occupational pattern of the predominant bat species Myotis myotis, which apparently stopped using the shelters as nursery roosts. These changes coincides with a time of extreme cold events succession during glacial periods, but also with evidence of intensive human occupation at some of the sites analysed. Some features of bat assemblages at these levels, such as differences in species composition between synchronous levels, the inability of bat palaeocommunities to recover during intermediate warmer periods, or detected seasonal alternation between hominis and humans, suggest that anthropic disturbance could have play a significant part in the decline of Middle Pleistocene bat palaeocommunities of Atapuerca.

Late Quaternary changes in bat palaeobiodiversity and palaeobiogeography under climatic and anthropogenic pressure: new insights from Marie-Galante, Lesser Antilles

Data on Lesser Antillean Late Quaternary fossil bat assemblages remains limited, leading to their general exclusion from studies focusing on Caribbean bat palaeobiodiversity and palaeobiogeography. Additionally, the role of climatic versus human pressure driving changes in faunal communities remains poorly understood. Here we describe a fossil bat assemblage from Blanchard Cave on Marie-Galante in the Lesser Antilles, which produced numerous bat remains from a well-dated, stratified context. Our study reveals the occurrence of at least 12 bat species during the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene on Marie-Galante, whereas only eight species are currently known on the island. Among these 12 species, six are extirpated and one is extinct. Faunal changes within the Blanchard sequence indicate variations in Pleistocene bat species representation in the Lesser Antilles to have been influenced by climatic conditions, with "northern species" (Greater Antilles) favored during glacial conditions and "southern species" (southern Lesser Antilles) during interglacial events. However, few species disappeared at the end of the Late Pleistocene, with most of the extinction/extirpation events occurring during the Holocene. This pattern suggests human activities in the Lesser Antilles to have played a major role in bat turnover during the late Holocene.

Early Pleistocene Bats from Pirro Nord (Apulia, Southern Italy)

Early Pleistocene Bats from Pirro Nord (Apulia, Southern Italy)

Holocene and Late Pleistocene Bat Fossils (Mammalia: Chiroptera) from Hamilton County, TN, and their Ecological Implications

Abstract Chiropteran mandibles from late Pleistocene/Holocene fossil cave localities in Hamilton County were identified in order to examine changes in bat species diversity and population trends over extended periods of time, providing insight into how bats in Southeast Tennessee have responded to major environmental changes over the past 10,000–20,000 years. Generic and species identifications were based on an unpublished key developed by the authors. Measurements of alveolar length (c1–m3) and total length measurements from the symphysis to the condyle were taken for all specimens identified as members of the genus Myotis in an attempt to identify species in this genus. The results of this study failed to confirm those of previous univariate morphological studies, suggesting that multivariate morphometric analyses may be needed to establish a means to differentiate among the species in this genus. Diversity data indicated two patterns of species abundance, with Eptesicus fuscus (Big Brown Bat) dominatin...

Late Pleistocene bat fossils from Anjohibe Cave, northwestern Madagascar

In spite of decades of research on Madagascar's unique and endemic modern fauna, the evolutionary history of the island's bat fauna remains largely unknown. Their origin and evolution is largely unknown because of the nature of the fossil record; the deepest well-dated glimpse of Madagascar's mammal groups comes from only 26,000 years ago. Bat remains have frequently been recovered from paleontological sites, but have been rarely identified or described. It therefore remains unknown whether bats underwent a reduction in species diversity similar to that seen in many of Madagascar's vertebrate clades. Herein I describe a collection of newly discovered subfossil bats from Anjohibe Cave, northwestern Madagascar, some estimated to have been deposited about 80,000 years ago. Five bat genera are represented as subfossil (Rousettus, Eidolon, Hipposideros, Triaenops, and Myotis) with four of these genera present in Anjohibe Cave today. The subfossil material has yielded two new species, indicating that Malagasy bats experienced recent species turnover, paralleling what is seen in much of the island's terrestrial vertebrate fauna.

Pleistocene Bats from Cave Deposits in Bahia, Brazil

Twenty-seven taxa of bats from late Pleistocene fossils originated from five caves in Bahia, Brazil. In one cave, humeri of Mormoops megalophylla were dated radiometrically to 20,060 ± 290 years ago. In another cave, a cranium of Desmodus rotundus was found adhering to the underside of a coprolite of a sloth (Nothrotherium) that had a radiometric age of 12,200 ± 120 radiocarbon years ago. Among taxa represented by the fossils were one extinct species (Desmodus draculae), the first South American fossil records for Mimon bennettii, Furipterus horrens, and Tadarida brasiliensis, and the first Brazilian fossil records for M. megalophylla, Phyllostomus discolor, Diphylla ecaudata, and Nyctinomops macrotis. All caves but one occur within the semiarid Caatinga biome today. However, fossil occurrences of several species (M. megalophylla, M. bennettii, and Eptesicus fuscus), which today select moister habitats or humid caves, suggest that conditions in the area during part of the late Pleistocene were wetter than at present.

Synopsis of Late Pliocene and Pleistocene Bats of North America and the Antilles

The fossil record of late Pliocene and Pleistocene bats of North America (including Mexico) and the Antilles is reviewed. Two genera, 13 species and three subspecies are considered extinct. Twelve new records are noted from Florida. The mammalian order Chiroptera is one of the most poorly docu- mented groups of mammals in the fossil record. Undoubtedly, this is due largely to their habits and, therefore, it is not surprising that the majority of late Pliocene and Pleistocene bats are cavernicolous species or close relatives of cavernicolous species. Tree-dwelling species are rare finds, but some have been recovered, usually from stream-channel or sinkhole deposits which held water in the past, and occasionally from owl pellets. Here, I am presenting a synoptic account of late Pliocene and Pleistocene bats of North America (including Mexico) and the Antilles and the faunas from which they were recovered. A review of Pleistocene vampire bats is in preparation (Clayton Ray, pers. comm.) and a new species of Desmodus from Venezuela will be described by Dr. Ray at a later date. A useful study of Pleistocene big brown bats (Eptesicus) is provided by Guilday (1967), and the Pleistocene and Recent big-eared bats (genera Euderma and Plecotus) are reviewed by Handley (1959).

A Pleistocene Bat from Florida

A Pleistocene Bat from Florida