Bats, Chiroptera

"A first record of mammals in the UNIMAS museum Malaysian Borneo; some printing errors to be corrected.

Abdullah MT, Wong Siew Fui and Besar Ketol. 2010. Catalogue of mammals in the UNIMAS Zoological Museum. Universiti Malaysia Sarawak Publication, Kota Samarahan.
ISBN 978-967-5527-02-9.
xii, 63 p. : col. ill. ; 25 cm."

Bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) have an almost worldwide distribution since the Early Eocene till present. The review of the fossil record of this group in Greece revealed the presence of five families (Rhinolophidae, Vespertilionidae, Miniopteridae, Rhinopomatidae, Megadermatidae) and more than 20 species of Rhinolophus, Samonycteris, Myotis, Nyctalus, Pipistrellus, Hypsugo, Vespertilio, Eptesicus, Barbastella, Plecotus, Miniopterus, and Rhinopoma including some taxa that cannot be identified beyond the family level—Rhinolophus and Myotis are by far the most diverse bat genera in Greece. Bat fossils are discovered in at least 23 localities, all of them East of Pindus Mountain Range (Macedonia, North Aegean Islands, Central Greece, Peloponnese, Cyclades, Dodecanese Islands and Crete), distributed from the Early Miocene until the Early/Middle Holocene. Herein, we also present for the first time some preliminary information for the chiropteran fauna from the Late Pleistocene locality Loutra Almopias Cave, which seems to be the richest and most diverse up to date in Greece.

The aim of the present Thesis is the examination of the chiropteran collection that has been retrieved from the two chronologically different fossiliferous assemblages of Loutra Almopias Cave A (Pella, Macedonia, Greece), which will contribute to the knowledge of the Quaternary bats of the Greek region and the Balkan Peninsula. The specimens retrieved from the cave’s floor sediments (LAC) are of Late Pleistocene age, whereas the specimens retrieved from the elevated chamber LAC Ia are of latest Pleistocene age. Attempts to date fossils failed due to their lack of collagen. The purpose was served by the first comprehensive systematic taxonomy and phenetic analysis of a fossil chiropteran fauna from the Greek region, correlation of the studied specimens with the two chronologically different faunal assemblages of the cave site and other modern and fossil assemblages from the Greek region and the broader region of the Balkan Peninsula, taphonomic analysis and a palaeoclimatological/palaeoecological approach. These were based on the determination of the 9004 chiropteran specimens according to their morphological and metrical characteristics, which resulted in the identification of 17 species from LAC and 20 from LAC Ia from three families (Rhinolophidae, Vespertilionidae, Miniopteridae) and nine genera (Rhinolophus, Myotis, Nyctalus, Pipistrellus, Vespertilio, Eptesicus, Plecotus, Barbastella, Miniopterus). Eight species described from Cave A are the first known records in Greece and one species is the first known record of a Late Pleistocene locality from the Balkan Peninsula. Nineteen species refer to the southernmost appearance of the Late Pleistocene of the Balkan Peninsula. Cave A served primarily as a nursery roost for many bats and secondarily as a warm refuge during colder periods. Predation from the European Eagle Owl, Bubo bubo, was opportunistic, indicating a mixed assemblage. Cave A acted as a refugium during the Pleistocene glacial oscillations and as a starting point for the repopulation of Central and Northern Europe after the Last Glacial Maximum. An increase in cold-adapted species is observed during the latest Pleistocene LAC Ia, which roughly coincides with the onset of Younger Dryas. The majority of the identified species are cave dwellers and have a preference for warm climatic conditions. A variety of different landscapes are used for foraging with a preference in mixed and/or forested areas with the presence of water bodies, being a must for a significant proportion of the identified taxa. The morphological characteristics of the chiropteran specimens from Cave A are similar to those of their extant representatives indicating only minor alterations to their body size apart from the body size of the Greater Horseshoe Bat, Rhinolophus ferrumequinum, which decreases from Late to latest Pleistocene, indicating its dependency on climate. The phenetic analysis of the chiropteran species from Cave A is the first ever conducted for Chiroptera from the Greek region and it confirms the reliability of the method for species discrimination of European bats. In conclusion, the Late Pleistocene bat fauna from Cave A is, up to date, the richest and most diverse not only from the Greek region, but from the Balkan Peninsula, too.

The exact anatomical location for an iron particle-based magnetic sense remains enigmatic in vertebrates. For mammals, findings from a cornea anaesthesia experiment in mole rats suggest that it carries the primary sensors for magnetoreception. Yet, this has never been tested in a free-ranging mammal. Here, we investigated whether intact corneal sensation is crucial for navigation in migrating Nathusius’ bats, Pipistrellus nathusii, translocated from their migratory corridor. We found that bats treated with corneal anaesthesia in both eyes flew in random directions after translocation and release, contrasting bats with a single eye treated, and the control group, which both oriented in the seasonally appropriate direction. Using a Ymaze test, we confirmed that light detection remained unaffected by topical anaesthesia. Therefore our results suggest the cornea as a possible site of magnetoreception in bats, although other conceivable effects of the anaesthetic are also explored. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the corneal based sense is of bilateral nature but can function in a single eye if necessary.

Background. The “small brown bat” group has always aroused an interest of professionals,
both in matters of taxonomy and geographic distribution. The territory of
European Russia and the Urals are inhabited by three morphologically similar representative
of the said group: Myotis mystacinus, M. davidii and M. brandtii. All three
species are found in the Southern Urals. Over the past two decades, there has accumulated
enough information about these types of findings that require generalization
and systematization. In this regard, the aim of the work is to describe all currently
known discovery sites of small brown bat species in the southern areas of the Southern
Urals and to reveal their distribution regularities.
Materials and methods. The research materials consisted of the information obtained
over the period of 1991–2003 in the course of the authors’ own long-term
field studies, literature, as well as data from the funds of the Zoological Institute
(St. Petersburg). The study area covered the territory of Orenburg region and southern
regions of the republic of Bashkortostan, as well as the eastern regions of the
West Kazakhstan region, north-eastern regions of Atyrau region and the north-west
of Aktobe region of Kazakhstan.
Results. The article shows all known to date discoveries of representatives of the
“small brown bat” group in the studied region. The habitat of M. mystacinus and
M. brandtii covers mostly all mountain-forests of the Southern Urals, from the north
to the south down to the river Sakmara. It was there that the researchers met them
most often and recorded the maximum number of individuals. Everywhere, both
species were found in almost the same habitats. However, despite the general nature
of the spread, in terms of occurrence M. mystacinus (n = 16) was still twice inferior
to M. brandtii (n = 31). To the south of the Orenburg region due to a rather strong
arid climate and a lack of suitable habitat, these species do not occur. The distribution
of M. davidii is linked to arid landscapes. All known findings (n = 10) were
made in the areas of Orenburg and Kazakh steppes and semi-deserts. This species is
not bound to woody vegetation, the places of its discovery were dominated by open
steppes or floodplains. However, they are not afraid of forests. In addition, all
M. davidii occurence places were located in areas of bedrock outcrops with many
expressed erosion and karst manifestations. It is assumed that the middle reaches of
the Sakmara area can be a co-habitation of all three species, but this requires further
investigation.
Conclusions. In the southern part of the Southern Urals and adjacent territories
the authors have established 57 places of occurrence of M. mystacinus, M. davidii
and M. brandtii. The greatest number of occurences was reported by M. mystacinus
and M. brandtii, which were mainly distributed in the mountain forest part. To the south of Orenburg region due to the arid climate these species do not occur. The distribution
of M. davidii is linked to the arid landscapes. All known findings were
made in the areas of Orenburg and Kazakh steppes and semi-deserts.

The structure of hibernating bat communities has been studied in eight artificial caves of Samar
skaya Luka differing in size and layout. Three types of the relative abundance distribution (RAD) of species
in these communities have been revealed. Conditions for hibernation are most favorable in large caves with a
stable microclimate, where the abundance of bats is high, the Shannon index has the peak values, and varia
tion in the index of species evenness is the lowest. In such caves, RAD fits the brokenstick and logseries
models. Variation in diversity indices reaches the highest level in shallow adits with a changeable microcli
mate, where RAD fits the geometric series model. The abundance, diversity, and structure of communities
depend mainly on cave size and the presence of absence of drafts and, to a lesser extent, on ambient temper
ature, availability of microshelters, and the type of landscape surrounding the cave. Anthropogenic factors
have a weak effect only on the abundance of individual species (M. nattereri, M. daubentonii, M. dasycneme,
and E. nilssonii) but not on the overall diversity of bat communities.

Specific features of the spatial distribution and localization of bats have been studied during their
hibernation in artificial caves of Samarskaya Luka. The proportion of cave area occupied by bats varies from 70
to 93% in large caves (>60000 m
2
), decreasing to 50% in medium-sized caves (10000–60000 m
2
) and to less
than 30% in small caves (<10000 m
2
). Approximately 9% of bats choose sites near cave openings, up to 25%
prefer central parts, but most bats (about 66%) concentrate in the deepest parts of caves. Among wintering species,
higher rates of occurrence and shelter occupancy are characteristic of
Plecotus auritus, Myotis daubentonii
, and
M. mystacinus
, whereas
M. dasycneme
and
M. brandtii
show the highest degree of aggregation. The
optimal temperature range for the wintering of all bat species is 2–4
°
C.
Myotis brandtii, Eptesicus nilssonii
,
and
M. daubentonii
prefer to hibernate in open spaces of cave ceilings;
M. mystacinus, E. serotinus
, and
Pl. auritus
usually occupy the middle and upper parts of walls; while
M. dasycneme
and
M. nattereri
occur
mainly in hollows on ceilings.

Исследованы особенности современного рас-пространения Pipistrellus kuhlii в Поволжье. Установлено, что в регионе за период 1996-2008 гг. вид значительно расширил границы своего ареала. В настоящее время северным пределом его распространения является Среднее Поволжье, где он достиг 53°32' с.ш. Ос-новной путь расселения вида проходит по долине р. Волги, а места обитания приурочены к населенным пунктам. Показатель «встречаемость» в разных частях региона неодинаковый и по направлению с юга на север уменьшается, достигая минимума в лесостепной зоне. Ука-зываются самые восточные пределы распространения вида в Европе. Ключевые слова: Pipistrellus kuhlii, распространение, Поволжье. On the modern distribution of Pipistrellus kuhlii (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) in the Volga region.-Smirnov D. G. and Vehnik V. P.-Peculiarities of the modern distribution of Pipistrellus kuhlii in the Volga region were studied. During 1996-2008, the species expanded its habitat. Now, the northern limit of its habitat is the Middle Volga region, where it reaches 53°32' N. The main way of expansion of the species passes along the Volga river valley, and the places of occurrence correspond to populated areas. The occurrence index varies in different parts of the region and decreases from south to north, having a minimum in the forest-steep zone. The eastern limit of the species' habitat in Europe is shown.

With one
of the hugest artificial caves in the Samarskaya Luka (the working-out area is ca. 87,706 m2, the
overall length of covered ways ca. 11,570 m) as an example, the bats are shown to use the cave’s
space differently in the summer and winter periods. In the winter, they occupy 93% of the cave’s
area, at the same time, 56.8% of the hibernating community concentrated on the perimeter of the
cave. In the western part of the cave with constant microclimate over the whole year, 79% of all
the bats were concentrated. A high aggregation rate was typical for M. dasycneme, lower aggregation
rates were detected for M. brandtii. This parameter had similar values for M. daubentonii and
E. nilssonii, but the first species was distributed more widely over the cave’s area. The most popularity
was noted for M. brandtii, and the highest ratio of cave usage was for Pl. auritus. In the
summer, only 1% of the bats stood in the cave and used it as a place of their day-time life. At the
summertime, the bats occupied only 10% of the cave’s area. They were distributed only in the
eastern part of the cave while its western part was empty.

As the world’s only flying mammals, bats fill an important ecological role in most ecosystems, acting as agents of seed dispersal, pollination, fertilization, and insect control. The human-mediated release of environmental contaminants has been implicated in the decline of many bat populations over the past few decades. Given bats’ ecological significance, I studied how bat presence and activity related to contaminated food and water sources in two global regions: 1) in and around the growing urban city of Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province, China, and 2) along the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, U.S.A., which has been subject to 150 years of mining. In China (Chapter II), I tested mercury concentrations in fur and organochlorine concentrations in guano to assess their relationships to land use type and bat species, relative age, body condition, and phonic type. Because the Japanese pipistrelle (Pipistrellus abramus) had the highest fur mercury concentrations of bats sampled, in Chapter III I examined genetic identity and gene flow to confirm that all bats sampled were indeed P. abramus and to better understand local movements and potential implications of the contaminant concentrations. Finally, in Colorado (Chapter IV), I tested whether bat activity and feeding attempts differed locally above streams of high versus low metal contamination at high-elevation sites (>2,900 m). In China (Chapter II), total mercury concentrations were significantly higher in adult P. abramus than in adult Chinese noctules (Nyctalus plancyi) (P < 0.001), and significantly higher in adult N. plancyi relative to juveniles (P < 0.001). There was no significant difference in concentrations by land use type (urban versus suburban), but 57% of adult pipistrelles had fur mercury concentrations above the threshold for reduced homeostatic control, with the maximum (33 ppm) from an adult female in an agricultural area. There was no relationship between fur mercury concentration and bat body condition for either species. Hexachlorobenzene, alpha-chlordane, p,p’-DDE, o,p’-DDD, and p,p’-DDD were detected in guano but at levels well below those associated with harm. More bat phonic types were detected at a forested mountain site than agricultural or urban areas, though this could not be related to contaminant concentrations. In Chapter III, mitochondrial (cyt b) and nuclear studies confirmed that all individuals assumed to be P. abramus matched the species genetically and that there was weak population structure in Chengdu. This corroborated high gene flow in the area and a likely home range size of <10 km. Additionally, the P. abramus population had two mitochondrial clades, which may indicate ancient lineage separation due to glaciation and potential differences in susceptibility to physiological stresses. In Colorado (Chapter IV), there was no significant difference between the number of calls recorded at more contaminated sites and that at less contaminated sites. Though not statistically significant, the majority of feeding buzzes occurred above cleaner streams, suggesting that contamination could be an issue in habitats where fresh water is less available. Limited sample size and a short sampling period were constraints in all studies.

By analogy with bat ectoparasites, it is assumed that Saurophthirus, a permanent ectoparasite of pterosaurs, was pupiparous (the female gave birth to a mature larva, which pupated immediately). The enlarged tracheal trunks containing air for the larva developing in the mother’s uterus indicate that Saurophthirus was a parasite of diving pterosaurs. The Saurophthiridae are the first Mesozoic insect group supposed to be pupiparous.

Research concerning spatial dynamics of biodiversity generally has been limited to considerations of the taxonomic dimension, which is insensitive to interspecific variation in ecological or evolutionary characteristics that play important roles in species assembly and provide linkages to ecosystem services. Consequently, the assumption that the taxonomic dimension is a good surrogate for other dimensions remains unconfirmed.We assessed variation in taxonomic (species richness) as well as phylogenetic and functional (Rao's quadratic entropy, a measurement of dispersion) dimensions of bat biodiversity along an elevational gradient in the Manu Biosphere Reserve of Peru. Phylogenetic dispersion was based on relatedness of species derived from a mammalian supertree. Functional dispersion was estimated separately for each of six functional components that reflect particular niche axes (e.g. diet, foraging strategy, body size) and for all functional components combined.Species richness declined non-linearly with elevation, whereas phylogenetic dispersion and functional dispersion based on all functional components were not significantly associated with elevation (orthogonal polynomial regression). Moreover, considerable heterogeneity in the form of elevational relationships existed among functional components. After accounting for variation in species richness, dispersion of phylogenetic, diet and foraging strategy attributes were significantly greater than expected at high elevations, whereas dispersion of body size was significantly less than expected at high elevations.Species richness was a poor surrogate for phylogenetic or functional dispersion. Functional dispersion based on multiple components obscured patterns detected by particular components and hindered identification of mechanistic explanations for elevational variation in biodiversity.Variation in phylogenetic dispersion effectively captured the composite variation represented by all functional components, suggesting a phylogenetic signal in functional attributes.Mechanisms that give rise to variation in richness do not fully account for variation in phylogenetic or functional characteristics of assemblages. Greater than expected phylogenetic, diet and foraging strategy dispersion at high elevations were associated with the loss of phylogenetically or functionally redundant species, suggesting that increasing interspecific competition with decreasing productivity resulted in competitive exclusion. In contrast, low dispersion of size attributes at high elevations suggests the importance of abiotic filtering that favors small-sized species that can more easily enter torpor.This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

The book is first of its kind pictorial hand book on bats of Odisha. Of the 25 species of bats known from Odisha, the book contains --- colour photographs of 21 different species and description of all the species. The introduction section gives a brief idea on basic taxonomy, biology, ecological importance, threats and conservation of bats as well as bats in mythology and popular cultures and a brief portrayal on chiropteran research in Odisha supplemented by figures and photographs. Some popular and interesting information are given in boxes. Prior to species account, descriptions of concerned families have been given in brief.  The species description starts with the Common name followed by the scientific name, physical description, habitat and ecology and geographic range in Odisha, India and elsewhere outside. Remarks on the species have been given wherever required. The page ends with a table describing the conservation status of the species in reference to International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 and Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES). A special section on how to study bats along with equipments and accessories required has been given. An updated checklist of bats reported from Odisha followed by glossary of technical terms used in the text, an index of common English names and scientific names for easy access to the species described in the book has also been given. A bibliography and further reading section has been given which will give additional source of information on systematic, natural history, ecology and conservation of bats in Indian subcontinent for the readers. This book is expected to serve as a preliminary source of information and arouse curiosity among the field researchers, naturalists and students to study and create concern for this neglected group of mammals.

We studied patterns in the use of space for foraging and roosting by two frugivorous bat species in a fiveyear-
old restored Atlantic forest located in a fragmented landscape in southeastern Brazil. Ten individuals
of Carollia perspicillata and eleven individuals of Artibeus lituratus were monitored through radio-telemetry
in five sampling sessions. Each session lasted 3–8 days for each individual, with an average of 25.4 ± 10
locations for each C. perspicillata individual and 19 ± 4.4 for each A. lituratus individual. We described an
average range of 124.4 ha and an average commuting distance of 1158.8 m for A. lituratus and an average
range and commuting distance of 32 ha and 489 m, respectively, for C. perspicillata. We demonstrated a
consistent pattern in habitat use and movements for both studied species, where they strictly used forests
(restored or not) for day roosting, roosting in the foliage of trees located only in secondary forest remnants
and restored areas, while restored areas were their main feeding habitat. We demonstrate that newly
restored forests can be readily incorporated as foraging and roosting habitats by these species, and that
C. perspicillata alters its roosting behavior in relation to preferred food availability. These results, when
combined with data on the diet of the studied species, show consistent evidence of the potential that bats
have to improve species diversity of anthropogenic plantings with their own natural seed dispersal.

http://repositorio.ul.pt/handle/10451/1685
 
 









 

 
   

  
    



 


 
 



 



 
 
 








 



 
 




 





 




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Platalina genovensium is a poorly known bat species from the west coast of Peru and Chile, considered as near threatened because of its narrow range of distribution. There are few records in Peru, and only one record in the Azapa valley, northern Chile from the year 1996. Here we report a new record for P. genovensium for the Azapa valley 19 years afterwards, confirming the presence of the species in the Arica y Parinacota region, Chile.

In order to clarify the distribution of bats of the genus Lasiurus in Colombia, we performed a morphological study of 49 specimens from four Colombian collections.
Our review confirms the presence of three species in Colombia (L. blossevillii, L. cinereus, and L. ega) with distribution in all natural regions that include six of the nine biogeographic provinces. These species can be easily differentiated based on external and cranial characters. Lasiurus cinereus is the largest species (forearm length > 52 mm) and L. blossevillii is the smallest (forearm < 42 mm); L. ega has a distinctive
skull shape with a developed sagittal crest. While previous literature make claims that L. egregius and L. castaneus occur in Colombia, our analysis found no support for this and even contradicts the evidence cited for their presence in the country. We demonstrate that one specimen attributed to L. egregius in literature corresponds to a misidentified L. blossevillii. Furthermore, we found that there are not any specimens
of L. castaneus from the Department of Cundinamarca despite several reports in the literature. The status of subspecies in Colombia remains controversial and more specimens are needed to determine whether there are clear distinctions between forms in any geographical region. Most of the specimens examined were males and in some cases, were collected opportunistically from dead individuals found in cities
in the Andean region.

Abstract.- A bat roost with 70 individuals
of Rhinolopus lepidus was found from an
underground cellar of an old temple at Rasul
Nagar (32º 19.687 N, 073º 46.922 E),
Gujranwala district, in the Punjab province.
From the roost, 10 (4♂, 6♀) individuals were
captured with the help of a hand net. The
average head and body length of all the
captured specimens was 42.36±1.1 mm,
forearm length was 40.34±0.75 mm, greatest
skull length (n = 2) was 17.5±0.49 mm while
baculum (n = 2) was 4.35±0.38 mm long. The
present record is first from the study area.

We surveyed Japanese large-footed bat Myotis macrodactylus (Temminck, 1840)  inhabiting the Nikishoro sea caves (the 1st and 2nd caves) of Kunashiri Island. The total number of 358 individuals of M. macroductylus (204 of male and 154 of female) was examined, and all of them were banded in 2011 and 2012. We found that the breeding females prefer to roost in the 1st cave, while the males and non-breeding females in the
2nd cave. A male M. macroductylus was found albino in 2012. The record was second in Kunashiri Island. We have not recaptured any of the banded individuals in other
neighboring area, such as the Shiretoko Peninsula, Hokkaido.

Parental care is crucial for offspring survival in many taxa but its burden and costs are often not equally distributed between the sexes. In bats, the majority of parental care is provided by females, making examples of paternal support towards pups exceedingly rare. One exception to this general pattern seemed to be the polygynous Seba’s short-tailed fruit bat Carollia perspicillata; two earlier studies suggested that paternal care occurs, i.e. that harem males prompt females to retrieve vocalizing pups. To corroborate this suggestion, we investigated the occurrence of maternal and paternal care in reaction to pup isolation calls in C. perspicillata. Acoustic measurements of 905 isolation calls from 17 pups revealed sufficient interindividual variation to encode an individual vocal signature. Correspondingly, mothers were capable of using this individual signature to discriminate between their own pups and agematched pups from other females belonging to their colony. Maternal experience was positively correlated with the strength of response behaviour during playbacks. Thus, our results indicate that pup isolation calls were used to elicit maternal care and that mothers recognize their pups based on an individual signature in isolation calls. However, in contrast to the previous studies mentioned above, we found no evidence that harem males reacted to pup isolation calls by prompting the respective mothers to retrieve their vocalizing pups. Instead, our results demonstrate that harem males engaged in courtship activities that were unaffected by pup isolation calls.

This note reports the first record of Micronycteris sanborni in Amazonas State, Brazil. It extends the species’ known range >2000 km northwestward and represents the first record of M. sanborni in a humid tropical ecosystem, suggesting that the species might not be exclusive to dry areas, as previously thought. The individual was captured in Vismia-dominated secondary forest within the fragmented landscape of the Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project. We present morphometric data and provide the first description of the echolocation calls of this poorly known species.