1,721,015 research outputs found
Presence of humans and domestic cats affects bat behaviour in an urban nursery of greater horseshoe bats (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum)
No full textProximity to humans is a primary stressor for wildlife, especially in urban habitats where frequent disturbance may occur. Several bat species often roost in buildings but while the effects of disturbance inside the roost are well documented, little is known about those occurring in the proximity of roosts. We tested the effects of anthropogenic stressors on bats by monitoring reactions to disturbance in a colony of greater horseshoe bats (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum). We assessed disturbance by recording and quantifying the presence of people, domestic cats and noise sources near the roost. Disturbance outside the roost caused the disruption of roosting clusters; when cats entered the roost, bats decreased indoor flight activity. Emergence timing was delayed when people were close to the roost exit, and the delay increased along with the number of people. The occurrence of a cat increased the degree of group clustering during emergence. Cats entered the roost especially when young bats were present, and bat remains occurred in 30% of the cat scats we examined. We show that the occurence of human activities near roosts and free-ranging domestic cats are important albeit overlooked sources of disturbance.</p
Acorns were good until tannins were found: Factors affecting seed-selection in the hazel dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius)
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Analysis of milk coagulation properties and non-coagulation probability in test day records
No full textTraits and trails: guild-specific effects of forest paths on bat activity
Full text linkHuman activities can substantially alter forest structure, consequently affecting forest animal communities. An important effect on bat behavior is given by canopy discontinuities like clearings or trails: while the former act as foraging sites, the latter are known to be used by bats to move inside the forest. For this reason, we can expect trails to have a strong influence on bat activity, with differences determined by the species' flying abilities. Here we assess the impact of trails on a local bat community by quantifying the effect of trails' characteristics on the activity of bat species in relation to their wing morphology. We collected paired acoustic data and environmental variables along trails and in internal areas of a forest in central Italy. We modelled the activity levels of three bat guilds differing in wing morphology and identified the species mostly responsible for the observed compositional dissimilarity in between trails and internal zones by adopting a multivariate approach. Trail width and tree's diameter were the main drivers of the observed differences between bat activity along trails and internal areas, but their effect differed among bat guilds. Edge and open-space foragers increased their activity along wider trails, while closed-space foragers showed an opposite trend; the latter also avoid trails in favor of internal areas especially when trees are larger. Four species yielded a significant contribution to the dissimilarity in activity levels between trails and internal areas, and namely Pipistrellus pipistrellus, Nyctalus noctula, Miniopterus schreibersii and Barbastella barbastellus. Our results show a clear effect of forest trails on bat activity, highlighting differences across functional groups in relation to trail characteristics. Furthermore, within guilds, not all species respond with the same intensity, suggesting differences in how different species are attracted to linear features and forest gaps. Overall, our results depict a complex interaction between forest trails and bat activity, suggesting that structural changes in forests can trigger diverse responses in bats. Future research on the topic may focus on assessing how such effects can affect bat communities at the landscape scale and longer time-scales
Adhesive traps for suppressing pest insects represent a serious threat to bats across Europe
Full text linkThe use of biocides is one of the main threats to biodiversity worldwide, representing a significant driver of decline for several taxa. Mechanical devices for the control of pest insect populations are commonly considered as less impacting, and yet may also represent a serious threat to wildlife. Among such mechanical devices, adhesive traps meant to control pest insects are especially widespread, and anecdotal evidence suggests that several vertebrates are at risk of being trapped by adhesive traps as bycatch. Specifically, we here focus on bats as potential bycatch of adhesive traps across Europe, conducting a literature review and community science data collection to describe and quantify bat mortality due to such devices, followed by a trait-based approach to highlight potential biases in the frequency of bycatch. We retrieved 222 cases of bats caught by adhesive traps, involving 17 species, with the brown long-eared bat Plecotus auritus being the most heavily affected. Among European bat species, probability of being caught by adhesive traps is significantly trait-biased, with the risk of getting caught being higher for species featuring smaller size, a gleaning hunting style, and being associated with anthropogenic habitats. Our results shed light upon a so-far overlooked risk posed by mechanical remedies meant to control insect pests upon bats, and the ecosystem services they provide. Our findings thus clearly indicate that the use of such devices should be avoided, especially in proximity to important roosts of rare or sensitive species, besides providing insights into the risk of "eco-friendly" remedies in organic agriculture
Ultrasonic communication in Gliridae (Rodentia): the hazel dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius) as a case-study.
No full text‘The early bird catches the nest’: possible competition between scops owls and ring-necked parakeets
No full textCompetition for critical resources is one of the key mechanisms through which invasive species impact on native communities. Among birds, the widely introduced ring-necked parakeet Psittacula krameri locally affects cavity-nesting communities through competition for suitable tree cavities, although it remains unclear to what extent such competition translates into population declines of native species. Here, we studied the potential for nest site competition between ring-necked parakeets and the native scops owl Otus scops, a small nocturnal migratory raptor, by comparing the spatial distribution of the nest site locations of the raptor before (2002) and after (2015) the parakeet invasion. Pre-invasion nesting sites of scops owls (2002) strongly coincided with those selected by ring-necked parakeets, but although both parakeet and scops owl populations increased during the study period, this was no longer true for 2015. Ring-necked parakeets took over several cavities formerly occupied by scops owls, and land-use data suggest that because of the higher overall breeding densities in 2015, scops owls were forced to occupy suboptimal breeding habitats to minimize nest site competition with invasive parakeets. Ring-necked parakeets start breeding early in the season, a behaviour enabling them to secure the best nest sites first, before the owls return from their wintering grounds. Our study highlights that locally observed competition not necessarily impacts on population dynamics of competing species and thus warns against uncritical extrapolation of smaller scale studies for assessing invasive species risks at larger spatial scales. Nonetheless, given the increasing number of studies demonstrating its competitive capacities, monitoring of ring-necked parakeet populations is prudent and mitigation measures (such as mounting of man-made nest-boxes, which are used by scops owls, but not by parakeets) may be justified when the parakeets are likely to invade areas harbouring cavity-nesters of conservation concern
The importance of ponds for the conservation of bats in urban landscapes
No full textPonds have an important role in the ecology of urban areas, as they provide essential habitats to aquatic species, as well as fundamental resources to terrestrial wildlife. Artificial water sites such as urban ponds provide foraging and drinking resources to synurbic wildlife, among which bats stand out as an important group. Availability of water sources may thus strongly influence the persistence of animal populations in urban habitats. Pond characteristics, as well as landscape structural patterns in the surrounding area, may modulate the use of such water sites by bats. We investigated bat species richness and activity levels in a pond archipelago within the city of Rome, one of the largest urban areas in Italy. We hypothesized that the presence of woody vegetation and hedgerows affects activity rates over ponds and that bat responses to habitat and landscape structures as well as artificial illumination are species-specific. Bat species richness was mainly influenced by the availability of wooded vegetation within 1000 m around ponds, with minor effects of the amount of bank habitat, while bat activity was affected by different habitat features in a species-specific way. All species responded positively to pond proximity to linear landscape elements such as hedgerows and to the amount of bank habitat. The presence of natural banks, the amount of woodland and that of open green areas positively influenced the activity of different species at different scales, while distances between ponds and artificial lights had a species-specific effect direction. Our results highlight the importance of key factors characterizing ponds and the surrounding habitat in urban landscapes whose appropriate management may improve the viability of synurbic bat populations
The Balkan long-eared bat (Plecotus kolombatovici) occurs in Italy – first confirmed record and potential distribution
No full textIn recent years, many cryptic species of bats have been discovered thanks to the application of molecular techniques. The several long-eared bat species (genus Plecotus) occurring in Europe show a marked morphological similarity and occur in sympatry, so that when confusion may arise, molecular approaches have prime importance to establish the actual specific identity. Italy represents a diversity hotspot for bats in Europe, hosting 35 species, among them four Plecotus species. In this study we report on the first confirmed record of the Balkan's long-eared bat Plecotus kolombatovici for peninsular Italy, review previous unconfirmed records and analyse the species’ potential distribution in the country using a modelling approach. The species’ potential distribution is strongly associated with warm summer temperatures and relatively high winter precipitations, typical of Mediterranean climate. The modelling exercise we did highlights that P. kolombatovici may occur in much of the Italian territory, including the Tyrrhenian coast and on many islands that border it. We therefore argue that P. kolombatovici presence has been so far overlooked due to the morphological resemblance of this species with the grey long-eared bat P. austriacus. Comprehensive surveys are needed to ascertain the actual distribution and establish the conservation status in Italy of this poorly known species to adopt effective legal and practical conservation measures.</p
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