Vanessa R Hensley, Ek Han Tan, Emily Gagne, Danielle L Levesque
Over the last few decades North American flying squirrels (Glaucomys spp.) have experienced dramatic northward range shifts. Previous studies have focused on the potential effects of warming winter temperatures, yet the hypothesis that rising summer temperature had a role in these range shifts remained unexplored. We therefore sought to determine the effect of high environmental temperatures on the thermoregulation and energetics of flying squirrels in an area of the Northeast of North America with a recent species turnover. Unable to find a logistically feasible population of the northern species (Glaucomys sabrinus), we focused on Southern Flying Squirrels (G. volans). Using flow-through respirometry, we measured the relationship between metabolic rate, evaporative water loss, and body temperature at high ambient temperatures. We also measured core body temperature in free-ranging flying squirrels using temperature-sensitive data loggers. We detected no significant increase in metabolic rate up to ambient temperatures as high as 40 °C. However, evaporative water loss increased at temperatures above 36.2 °C. Free-ranging body temperature of flying squirrels followed a circadian pattern with a ~2 °C difference between active and resting phase modal body temperatures. Rest-phase body temperatures were influenced by environmental temperatures with higher resting temperatures observed on days with higher daily maximum ambient temperatures but not to an extent that energy or water costs were significantly increased during rest. We found that, due to a relatively high level of thermal tolerance, high ambient temperatures are unlikely to cause an energetic strain on Southern Flying Squirrels. However, these findings do not preclude negative impacts of high ambient temperatures on the northern species, and these may still play a role in the changing distributions of Glaucomys in North America.
{"title":"Assessing responses to heat in a range-shifting, nocturnal, flying squirrel","authors":"Vanessa R Hensley, Ek Han Tan, Emily Gagne, Danielle L Levesque","doi":"10.1093/jmammal/gyae041","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae041","url":null,"abstract":"Over the last few decades North American flying squirrels (Glaucomys spp.) have experienced dramatic northward range shifts. Previous studies have focused on the potential effects of warming winter temperatures, yet the hypothesis that rising summer temperature had a role in these range shifts remained unexplored. We therefore sought to determine the effect of high environmental temperatures on the thermoregulation and energetics of flying squirrels in an area of the Northeast of North America with a recent species turnover. Unable to find a logistically feasible population of the northern species (Glaucomys sabrinus), we focused on Southern Flying Squirrels (G. volans). Using flow-through respirometry, we measured the relationship between metabolic rate, evaporative water loss, and body temperature at high ambient temperatures. We also measured core body temperature in free-ranging flying squirrels using temperature-sensitive data loggers. We detected no significant increase in metabolic rate up to ambient temperatures as high as 40 °C. However, evaporative water loss increased at temperatures above 36.2 °C. Free-ranging body temperature of flying squirrels followed a circadian pattern with a ~2 °C difference between active and resting phase modal body temperatures. Rest-phase body temperatures were influenced by environmental temperatures with higher resting temperatures observed on days with higher daily maximum ambient temperatures but not to an extent that energy or water costs were significantly increased during rest. We found that, due to a relatively high level of thermal tolerance, high ambient temperatures are unlikely to cause an energetic strain on Southern Flying Squirrels. However, these findings do not preclude negative impacts of high ambient temperatures on the northern species, and these may still play a role in the changing distributions of Glaucomys in North America.","PeriodicalId":50157,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Mammalogy","volume":"2016 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140942483","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Charles J Marsh, Yanina V Sica, Nathan S Upham, Walter Jetz
We welcome feedback on the range maps published in Marsh et al. (2022) where it constructively improves our knowledge on species distributions. Unfortunately, we are concerned that criticisms raised by Arbogast and Kerhoulas are steps backward, not forward, particularly as they did not access the original range map data of Marsh et al. (2022). We stress that evaluating range maps using Global Biodiversity Information Facility data without the necessary quality control and filtering will lead to flawed interpretations—using the same approach, an even greater proportion, >99.5%, of IUCN mammal range maps would fail to meet their expectations. We take this opportunity to highlight the fine-scale inaccuracies, scale limitations, and range map variance that are expected across all expert range map sources and that any researcher should consider during any analysis. Finally, we again announce the availability of an online tool for providing annotations and proposing adjustments to range maps, and suggest this as a more appropriate forum for constructively and transparently improving range maps.
{"title":"Response to Arbogast and Kerhoulas","authors":"Charles J Marsh, Yanina V Sica, Nathan S Upham, Walter Jetz","doi":"10.1093/jmammal/gyae019","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae019","url":null,"abstract":"We welcome feedback on the range maps published in Marsh et al. (2022) where it constructively improves our knowledge on species distributions. Unfortunately, we are concerned that criticisms raised by Arbogast and Kerhoulas are steps backward, not forward, particularly as they did not access the original range map data of Marsh et al. (2022). We stress that evaluating range maps using Global Biodiversity Information Facility data without the necessary quality control and filtering will lead to flawed interpretations—using the same approach, an even greater proportion, >99.5%, of IUCN mammal range maps would fail to meet their expectations. We take this opportunity to highlight the fine-scale inaccuracies, scale limitations, and range map variance that are expected across all expert range map sources and that any researcher should consider during any analysis. Finally, we again announce the availability of an online tool for providing annotations and proposing adjustments to range maps, and suggest this as a more appropriate forum for constructively and transparently improving range maps.","PeriodicalId":50157,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Mammalogy","volume":"6 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140930886","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
In a recent paper titled Expert range maps of global mammal distributions harmonised to three taxonomic authorities, Marsh et al. (2022) introduced a series of new geographic range maps for all extant species of mammals and made these maps available on the Map of Life (MoL) website (www.mol.org). The title of the paper and inclusion of over 140 prominent mammalogists and biogeographers as coauthors strongly suggested that these new range maps were carefully vetted. However, when examining the maps of Marsh et al. (2022) on the MoL web platform, we found a variety of serious problems, including, but not limited to: range exaggerations (inclusion of substantial geographic areas not represented by specimen records or verified observations); range maps that are geographically shifted so that species are shown as occurring in areas in which they do not, and not occurring in areas in which they do (and in some cases, these new maps do not even encompass the type locality of a species); range maps that simply omit peripheral populations of conservation concern; and range maps for fully marine mammals (i.e., those that do not spend any time on land) that include large swaths of both insular and continental landmasses. Overall, we evaluated the new “expert” mammal range maps on the MoL platform for 78 species (retrieved between 31 March 2022 and 1 April 2023) and show that there are serious, systemic problems with these maps, and that these problems are both geographically and taxonomically widespread. As such, we caution researchers to carefully review and evaluate the range maps of Marsh et al. (2022) on the MoL before using them for any research purpose—including conservation, biogeographical, and macroecological analyses of mammals.
{"title":"RE: Expert range maps of global mammal distributions harmonised to three taxonomic authorities","authors":"Brian S Arbogast, Nicholas J Kerhoulas","doi":"10.1093/jmammal/gyae018","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae018","url":null,"abstract":"In a recent paper titled Expert range maps of global mammal distributions harmonised to three taxonomic authorities, Marsh et al. (2022) introduced a series of new geographic range maps for all extant species of mammals and made these maps available on the Map of Life (MoL) website (www.mol.org). The title of the paper and inclusion of over 140 prominent mammalogists and biogeographers as coauthors strongly suggested that these new range maps were carefully vetted. However, when examining the maps of Marsh et al. (2022) on the MoL web platform, we found a variety of serious problems, including, but not limited to: range exaggerations (inclusion of substantial geographic areas not represented by specimen records or verified observations); range maps that are geographically shifted so that species are shown as occurring in areas in which they do not, and not occurring in areas in which they do (and in some cases, these new maps do not even encompass the type locality of a species); range maps that simply omit peripheral populations of conservation concern; and range maps for fully marine mammals (i.e., those that do not spend any time on land) that include large swaths of both insular and continental landmasses. Overall, we evaluated the new “expert” mammal range maps on the MoL platform for 78 species (retrieved between 31 March 2022 and 1 April 2023) and show that there are serious, systemic problems with these maps, and that these problems are both geographically and taxonomically widespread. As such, we caution researchers to carefully review and evaluate the range maps of Marsh et al. (2022) on the MoL before using them for any research purpose—including conservation, biogeographical, and macroecological analyses of mammals.","PeriodicalId":50157,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Mammalogy","volume":"47 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140942228","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
It is commonly recognized that predation and the risk of predation can have profound effects on behaviors and population ecology of prey. Comparatively, little attention has been paid to the trade-offs hosts make to manage the risk of parasitism, but there is evidence that hosts make behavioral trade-offs to avoid parasitism in ways that resemble those made by prey animals under the risk of predation. Mosquitoes are common hematophagous ectoparasites which parasitize a wide range of vertebrates, resulting in blood loss, distraction, and disease transmission. Many hosts engage in defensive behaviors to repel or kill mosquitoes and these behaviors likely come at the expense of activities such as foraging and vigilance for predators. We placed a mosquito attractant (BG-Sweetscent) and repellant (allethrin) near artificial foraging patches in areas where mosquitoes were common and measured the amount of grain left after a night of foraging (giving-up density) to investigate whether mosquitoes influenced Cotton Mouse (Peromyscus gossypinus) foraging. We predicted that in patches with mosquito attractants, mosquito harassment would cause mice to engage in defensive behaviors which would distract or deter them from foraging, resulting in less grain consumption relative to control patches. Conversely, we predicted that in mosquito-repellent patches, mice would experience less harassment, resulting in more grain consumption. Indoor arena trials found no evidence that the mosquito treatments influenced cotton mouse behavior in the absence of mosquitoes. However, we found no evidence that mosquito treatments affected giving-up densities.
{"title":"Mosquitoes do not influence Cotton Mouse (Peromyscus gossypinus) giving-up densities","authors":"Gail Morris, L Mike Conner","doi":"10.1093/jmammal/gyae047","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae047","url":null,"abstract":"It is commonly recognized that predation and the risk of predation can have profound effects on behaviors and population ecology of prey. Comparatively, little attention has been paid to the trade-offs hosts make to manage the risk of parasitism, but there is evidence that hosts make behavioral trade-offs to avoid parasitism in ways that resemble those made by prey animals under the risk of predation. Mosquitoes are common hematophagous ectoparasites which parasitize a wide range of vertebrates, resulting in blood loss, distraction, and disease transmission. Many hosts engage in defensive behaviors to repel or kill mosquitoes and these behaviors likely come at the expense of activities such as foraging and vigilance for predators. We placed a mosquito attractant (BG-Sweetscent) and repellant (allethrin) near artificial foraging patches in areas where mosquitoes were common and measured the amount of grain left after a night of foraging (giving-up density) to investigate whether mosquitoes influenced Cotton Mouse (Peromyscus gossypinus) foraging. We predicted that in patches with mosquito attractants, mosquito harassment would cause mice to engage in defensive behaviors which would distract or deter them from foraging, resulting in less grain consumption relative to control patches. Conversely, we predicted that in mosquito-repellent patches, mice would experience less harassment, resulting in more grain consumption. Indoor arena trials found no evidence that the mosquito treatments influenced cotton mouse behavior in the absence of mosquitoes. However, we found no evidence that mosquito treatments affected giving-up densities.","PeriodicalId":50157,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Mammalogy","volume":"38 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140931108","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Julie-Pier Viau, Daniel Sigouin, Martin-Hugues St-Laurent
Old-growth forests harbor a large amount of complex structural features that result in a wide array of wildlife habitats. However, intensive forest management is gradually converting old-growth forest into younger, even-aged stands, reducing structural complexity and threatening the persistence of old-growth-dependent species. Maintaining elements of complex stand structure is critical to the conservation of old-growth forest specialists that use different habitat components at different periods of their annual cycle, and it requires a comprehensive understanding of seasonal variation in the habitat needs of these species. However, difficulties in observing free-ranging animals have sometimes limited our ability to assess such variations in habitat requirements, especially for small, elusive species. To address this, we used GPS telemetry collars to describe fine-scale habitat selection patterns of 6 male American Martens (Martes americana) during 2 contrasting periods of the year (snow-free, from mid-April to mid-November; snow-covered, from mid-November to mid-April), an objective formerly hard to achieve using conventional VHF telemetry. We used resource selection functions conducted at the fourth order of selection to compare habitat characteristics found at the sites used by martens (GPS locations, n = 100) to those found on an equal number of available sites (random points, n = 100) within each individual seasonal home range. We conducted vegetation surveys on these 200 sites to describe habitat and built candidate models representing different concurrent hypotheses. Our results showed that proxies of prey availability, predator avoidance, and thermal constraints were the primary factors influencing marten habitat selection during both periods, although their respective importance differed between periods. Martens selected sites with a high density of large-diameter snags (≥30·ha−1), high conifer canopy closure (≥53%), and a dense lateral cover (≥81%) during the snow-free period, but selected sites with a high volume of coarse woody debris (≥64 m3·ha−1) and high conifer canopy closure (≥48%) during the snow-covered period. Our results highlight the importance of contrasting seasonal changes in habitat selection patterns of small carnivores and may help maintain structural attributes in the landscape that are suitable for male American Martens.
{"title":"Seasonal shifts in the habitat selection patterns of male American Marten (Martes americana) at a fine spatial scale","authors":"Julie-Pier Viau, Daniel Sigouin, Martin-Hugues St-Laurent","doi":"10.1093/jmammal/gyae048","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae048","url":null,"abstract":"Old-growth forests harbor a large amount of complex structural features that result in a wide array of wildlife habitats. However, intensive forest management is gradually converting old-growth forest into younger, even-aged stands, reducing structural complexity and threatening the persistence of old-growth-dependent species. Maintaining elements of complex stand structure is critical to the conservation of old-growth forest specialists that use different habitat components at different periods of their annual cycle, and it requires a comprehensive understanding of seasonal variation in the habitat needs of these species. However, difficulties in observing free-ranging animals have sometimes limited our ability to assess such variations in habitat requirements, especially for small, elusive species. To address this, we used GPS telemetry collars to describe fine-scale habitat selection patterns of 6 male American Martens (Martes americana) during 2 contrasting periods of the year (snow-free, from mid-April to mid-November; snow-covered, from mid-November to mid-April), an objective formerly hard to achieve using conventional VHF telemetry. We used resource selection functions conducted at the fourth order of selection to compare habitat characteristics found at the sites used by martens (GPS locations, n = 100) to those found on an equal number of available sites (random points, n = 100) within each individual seasonal home range. We conducted vegetation surveys on these 200 sites to describe habitat and built candidate models representing different concurrent hypotheses. Our results showed that proxies of prey availability, predator avoidance, and thermal constraints were the primary factors influencing marten habitat selection during both periods, although their respective importance differed between periods. Martens selected sites with a high density of large-diameter snags (≥30·ha−1), high conifer canopy closure (≥53%), and a dense lateral cover (≥81%) during the snow-free period, but selected sites with a high volume of coarse woody debris (≥64 m3·ha−1) and high conifer canopy closure (≥48%) during the snow-covered period. Our results highlight the importance of contrasting seasonal changes in habitat selection patterns of small carnivores and may help maintain structural attributes in the landscape that are suitable for male American Martens.","PeriodicalId":50157,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Mammalogy","volume":"156 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140930884","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Lexi E Frank, Laramie L Lindsey, Evan J Kipp, Christopher Faulk, Suzanne Stone, Tanya M Roerick, Seth A Moore, Tiffany M Wolf, Peter A Larsen
Accurate taxonomic species identification is essential to the study of mammals. Despite this necessity, rapid and accurate identification of cryptic, understudied, and elusive mammals remains challenging. Traditional barcoding of mitochondrial genes is standard for molecular identification but requires time-consuming wet-lab methodologies. Recent bioinformatic advancements for nanopore sequencing data offer exciting opportunities for noninvasive and field-based identification of mammals. Nanopore adaptive sampling (NAS), a polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-free method, selectively sequences regions of DNA according to user-specified reference databases. Here, we utilized NAS to enrich mammalian mitochondrial genome sequencing to identify species. Fecal DNA extractions were sequenced from 9 mammals, several collected in collaboration with Minnesota Tribal Nations, to demonstrate utility for NAS barcoding of noninvasive samples. By mapping to the entire National Center for Biotechnology Information mammalian mitochondrial reference genome database and bioinformatically analyzing highly similar matches, we successfully produced species identifications for all fecal samples. Eight of 9 species identifications matched previous PCR or animal/fecal appearance-based identifications. For the ninth species, our genetic data indicate a misidentification stemming from the original study. Our approach has a range of applications—particularly in field-based wildlife research, conservation, disease surveillance, and monitoring of wildlife trade. Of importance to Minnesota tribes is invasive species monitoring, detections, and confirmation as climate impacts cause changes in biodiversity and shifts in species distributions. The rapid assessment techniques described here will be useful as new introductions and range expansions of native and invasive species may first be detected by the presence of signs such as scat rather than direct observations and will be helpful for chronically understaffed tribal natural resources agencies.
准确的物种分类鉴定对哺乳动物研究至关重要。尽管如此,快速准确地鉴定隐蔽的、研究不足的和难以捉摸的哺乳动物仍然具有挑战性。传统的线粒体基因条形码是分子鉴定的标准,但需要耗时的湿实验室方法。纳米孔测序数据在生物信息学方面的最新进展为非侵入性和野外鉴定哺乳动物提供了令人兴奋的机会。纳米孔自适应采样(NAS)是一种无需聚合酶链式反应(PCR)的方法,可根据用户指定的参考数据库对DNA区域进行选择性测序。在这里,我们利用 NAS 丰富哺乳动物线粒体基因组测序,以确定物种。我们对 9 种哺乳动物的粪便 DNA 提取物进行了测序,其中几种是与明尼苏达部落合作采集的,以证明 NAS 条形编码非侵入性样本的实用性。通过与整个美国国家生物技术信息中心哺乳动物线粒体参考基因组数据库进行映射,并对高度相似的匹配进行生物信息分析,我们成功地对所有粪便样本进行了物种鉴定。在 9 个物种鉴定中,有 8 个与之前基于 PCR 或动物/粪便外观的鉴定结果相吻合。对于第九个物种,我们的基因数据表明是源于原始研究的错误鉴定。我们的方法具有广泛的应用前景,特别是在基于野外的野生动物研究、保护、疾病监测和野生动物贸易监控方面。对明尼苏达部落来说,最重要的是入侵物种的监测、检测和确认,因为气候影响会导致生物多样性的变化和物种分布的转移。本文介绍的快速评估技术将非常有用,因为本地物种和入侵物种的新引进和范围扩大可能首先通过粪便等迹象的存在而不是直接观察来发现,这对长期人手不足的部落自然资源机构很有帮助。
{"title":"Rapid molecular species identification of mammalian scat samples using nanopore adaptive sampling","authors":"Lexi E Frank, Laramie L Lindsey, Evan J Kipp, Christopher Faulk, Suzanne Stone, Tanya M Roerick, Seth A Moore, Tiffany M Wolf, Peter A Larsen","doi":"10.1093/jmammal/gyae044","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae044","url":null,"abstract":"Accurate taxonomic species identification is essential to the study of mammals. Despite this necessity, rapid and accurate identification of cryptic, understudied, and elusive mammals remains challenging. Traditional barcoding of mitochondrial genes is standard for molecular identification but requires time-consuming wet-lab methodologies. Recent bioinformatic advancements for nanopore sequencing data offer exciting opportunities for noninvasive and field-based identification of mammals. Nanopore adaptive sampling (NAS), a polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-free method, selectively sequences regions of DNA according to user-specified reference databases. Here, we utilized NAS to enrich mammalian mitochondrial genome sequencing to identify species. Fecal DNA extractions were sequenced from 9 mammals, several collected in collaboration with Minnesota Tribal Nations, to demonstrate utility for NAS barcoding of noninvasive samples. By mapping to the entire National Center for Biotechnology Information mammalian mitochondrial reference genome database and bioinformatically analyzing highly similar matches, we successfully produced species identifications for all fecal samples. Eight of 9 species identifications matched previous PCR or animal/fecal appearance-based identifications. For the ninth species, our genetic data indicate a misidentification stemming from the original study. Our approach has a range of applications—particularly in field-based wildlife research, conservation, disease surveillance, and monitoring of wildlife trade. Of importance to Minnesota tribes is invasive species monitoring, detections, and confirmation as climate impacts cause changes in biodiversity and shifts in species distributions. The rapid assessment techniques described here will be useful as new introductions and range expansions of native and invasive species may first be detected by the presence of signs such as scat rather than direct observations and will be helpful for chronically understaffed tribal natural resources agencies.","PeriodicalId":50157,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Mammalogy","volume":"21 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140883730","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Matthew R Wood, J Low de Vries, Ara Monadjem, Wanda Markotter
Home range is an ecological concept that affects many aspects of the life of vertebrates and hence understanding how it varies between species is crucial. Mammalian home range size has been linked to body size and diet, but these studies were based predominantly on terrestrial species and most specifically excluded bats. As the only group of flying mammals, bats experience distinctly different constraints on movement, and hence home range. However, despite their diversity, relatively little is known about the home ranges of bats, and this is the first global review assessing correlates of their home range size. Our hypothesis is that home range will be impacted by different ecological conditions experienced by the bats and by the biological traits of the bats themselves. We performed a meta-analysis based on published data for 81 bat species to identify variables that contribute most to home range size. Sex, wing loading, functional group, colony size, dietary class, distance from the equator (latitudinal region), habitat type, and the interaction between habitat type and latitudinal region were all important explanatory variables. Wing loading was positively correlated with home range size—while females, open-air foragers, large colony sizes, and bats in temperate regions consistently had large home ranges. Understanding the correlates of home range has important implications, for example, for bat conservation and for assessing the risk of spillover of zoonotic pathogens from bats to humans and livestock.
{"title":"Review and meta-analysis of correlates of home range size in bats","authors":"Matthew R Wood, J Low de Vries, Ara Monadjem, Wanda Markotter","doi":"10.1093/jmammal/gyae036","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae036","url":null,"abstract":"Home range is an ecological concept that affects many aspects of the life of vertebrates and hence understanding how it varies between species is crucial. Mammalian home range size has been linked to body size and diet, but these studies were based predominantly on terrestrial species and most specifically excluded bats. As the only group of flying mammals, bats experience distinctly different constraints on movement, and hence home range. However, despite their diversity, relatively little is known about the home ranges of bats, and this is the first global review assessing correlates of their home range size. Our hypothesis is that home range will be impacted by different ecological conditions experienced by the bats and by the biological traits of the bats themselves. We performed a meta-analysis based on published data for 81 bat species to identify variables that contribute most to home range size. Sex, wing loading, functional group, colony size, dietary class, distance from the equator (latitudinal region), habitat type, and the interaction between habitat type and latitudinal region were all important explanatory variables. Wing loading was positively correlated with home range size—while females, open-air foragers, large colony sizes, and bats in temperate regions consistently had large home ranges. Understanding the correlates of home range has important implications, for example, for bat conservation and for assessing the risk of spillover of zoonotic pathogens from bats to humans and livestock.","PeriodicalId":50157,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Mammalogy","volume":"13 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140883946","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cintya A Segura-Trujillo, Luis Ignacio Iñiguez-Dávalos, Sergio Ticul Álvarez-Castañeda, Susette Castañeda-Rico, Jesús E Maldonado
Arthropod–bat interactions are often considered as a base model for studying factors underlying predator–prey coevolutionary processes. Bats developed ultrasonic echolocation to hunt, and in response some arthropods developed defense mechanisms such as ultrasonic hearing, allowing them to elude bat predators. The present study analyzes the feeding patterns of bats, focusing on sonic-auditory sensory mechanisms in predator–prey interactions. Next-generation DNA sequence data from fecal samples were used to analyze the diet of 17 bat species from Mexico. Arthropod prey taxa were classified according to their auditory traits, and echolocation data were recompiled from literature review. We: (i) classified arthropod families according to their hearing ability; (ii) estimated arthropod taxon richness and proportion in the diet of each bat species; and (iii) used multidimensional scaling, principal component analysis, and regression to analyze prey consumption patterns in relation to their auditory traits and in relation to echolocation characteristics of bats. Finally, we analyzed the relationship between foraging time and auditory characteristics of prey. Families with hearing organs correspond to the orders Lepidoptera and Orthoptera. We registered 20 families of Lepidoptera and 5 of Orthoptera—7 and 3 with hearing organs, respectively. Of these orders, families lacking ears were recorded in the diet of a few bat species. Our results support the allotonic frequency hypothesis predicting a difference in emission frequency intervals between predator and prey. However, we found that the consumption of earless moths is less frequent and is related to diurnal and twilight activity—hence, their consumption is limited to bat species foraging early. Results indicate bats feed on arthropod prey successfully despite the ultrasonic hearing ability of the prey. These results may be due to counteradaptations that allow maintenance of an asymmetric “arms race” between bats and eared insects that favors the predator.
{"title":"Interaction of sound-audition traits between eared insects and arthropodophagous bats: using a DNA approach to assess diet","authors":"Cintya A Segura-Trujillo, Luis Ignacio Iñiguez-Dávalos, Sergio Ticul Álvarez-Castañeda, Susette Castañeda-Rico, Jesús E Maldonado","doi":"10.1093/jmammal/gyae037","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae037","url":null,"abstract":"Arthropod–bat interactions are often considered as a base model for studying factors underlying predator–prey coevolutionary processes. Bats developed ultrasonic echolocation to hunt, and in response some arthropods developed defense mechanisms such as ultrasonic hearing, allowing them to elude bat predators. The present study analyzes the feeding patterns of bats, focusing on sonic-auditory sensory mechanisms in predator–prey interactions. Next-generation DNA sequence data from fecal samples were used to analyze the diet of 17 bat species from Mexico. Arthropod prey taxa were classified according to their auditory traits, and echolocation data were recompiled from literature review. We: (i) classified arthropod families according to their hearing ability; (ii) estimated arthropod taxon richness and proportion in the diet of each bat species; and (iii) used multidimensional scaling, principal component analysis, and regression to analyze prey consumption patterns in relation to their auditory traits and in relation to echolocation characteristics of bats. Finally, we analyzed the relationship between foraging time and auditory characteristics of prey. Families with hearing organs correspond to the orders Lepidoptera and Orthoptera. We registered 20 families of Lepidoptera and 5 of Orthoptera—7 and 3 with hearing organs, respectively. Of these orders, families lacking ears were recorded in the diet of a few bat species. Our results support the allotonic frequency hypothesis predicting a difference in emission frequency intervals between predator and prey. However, we found that the consumption of earless moths is less frequent and is related to diurnal and twilight activity—hence, their consumption is limited to bat species foraging early. Results indicate bats feed on arthropod prey successfully despite the ultrasonic hearing ability of the prey. These results may be due to counteradaptations that allow maintenance of an asymmetric “arms race” between bats and eared insects that favors the predator.","PeriodicalId":50157,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Mammalogy","volume":"105 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140839859","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Paulo Estefano D Bobrowiec, Valéria da Cunha Tavares
The life cycles of bats are constrained by availability of resources such as food and shelter. Disruptions limiting otherwise naturally regulated access to these resources ultimately affect the fitness of bat populations and may eventually lead to local extinctions. We sampled bats before and after an Amazonian mega-dam water filling and retrieved data on their reproductive phenology, testing if and how sex ratio, seasonal abundance, and reproductive patterns respond to impacts of the newly operating hydroelectric dam. We analyzed data from 3,298 bat captures of 49 species. Females outnumbered males, previously and after the dam implementation, and we observed seasonal variations in the abundance of bats, which was lower after the implementation of the dam for most species. All species had at least 1 reproductive peak of pregnancy and/or lactation beginning at a variable time across seasons. Most species and functional ensembles were reproductively bimodal, with exceptions being the polymodal Artibeus obscurus and unimodal Phylostomus elongatus. Operations of the hydroelectric dam affected the abundance of both sexes equally, and effects were stronger in the rainy season, altering the timing of reproduction for females, delaying and shortening pregnancy and lactation. These changes expressed in female reproductive activity may be related to the shortfall of resources because of loss of irreplaceable vegetation caused by the dam filling. As we cannot predict the roles of variation of reproductive patterns observed after the filling in the long run we reinforce the importance of long-term, continuous monitoring and management to safeguard the reestablishment of reproductive patterns of females in order to repopulate and keep bat populations healthy in remaining areas along following dam construction.
{"title":"Hydroelectric dam impacts shorten and delay the reproductive periods of female leaf-nosed bats in Western Amazonia","authors":"Paulo Estefano D Bobrowiec, Valéria da Cunha Tavares","doi":"10.1093/jmammal/gyae043","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae043","url":null,"abstract":"The life cycles of bats are constrained by availability of resources such as food and shelter. Disruptions limiting otherwise naturally regulated access to these resources ultimately affect the fitness of bat populations and may eventually lead to local extinctions. We sampled bats before and after an Amazonian mega-dam water filling and retrieved data on their reproductive phenology, testing if and how sex ratio, seasonal abundance, and reproductive patterns respond to impacts of the newly operating hydroelectric dam. We analyzed data from 3,298 bat captures of 49 species. Females outnumbered males, previously and after the dam implementation, and we observed seasonal variations in the abundance of bats, which was lower after the implementation of the dam for most species. All species had at least 1 reproductive peak of pregnancy and/or lactation beginning at a variable time across seasons. Most species and functional ensembles were reproductively bimodal, with exceptions being the polymodal Artibeus obscurus and unimodal Phylostomus elongatus. Operations of the hydroelectric dam affected the abundance of both sexes equally, and effects were stronger in the rainy season, altering the timing of reproduction for females, delaying and shortening pregnancy and lactation. These changes expressed in female reproductive activity may be related to the shortfall of resources because of loss of irreplaceable vegetation caused by the dam filling. As we cannot predict the roles of variation of reproductive patterns observed after the filling in the long run we reinforce the importance of long-term, continuous monitoring and management to safeguard the reestablishment of reproductive patterns of females in order to repopulate and keep bat populations healthy in remaining areas along following dam construction.","PeriodicalId":50157,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Mammalogy","volume":"119 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140839941","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Daniel Ramos-H., Ganesh Marín, Daniela Cafaggi, Cárol Sierra-Durán, Aarón Romero-Ruíz, Rodrigo A Medellín
Although Mexico holds the southernmost hibernating bats in North America, information on winter behavior and hibernacula microclimate use of temperate Mexican bats is limited. We studied hibernating bats at high altitudes (>1,000 m a.s.l.) in northern and central Mexico during 5 consecutive winters. Our aims were to document and describe the hibernacula, winter behavior (such as abundance and roost pattern), and microclimates (estimated as adjacent substrate temperature) of cave-hibernating bats in Mexico. We found 78 hibernacula and 6,089 torpid bats of 10 vespertilionid species, increasing by over 50% the number of cave-hibernating bat species and quadrupling the number of hibernacula for Mexico. Hibernacula were at altitudes between 1,049 and 3,633 m a.s.l., located in 3 mountain ranges, mainly in oak and conifer forests. Myotis velifer was the most common species, followed by Corynorhinus townsendii and C. mexicanus. We recorded the adjacent substrate temperatures from 9 species totaling 1,106 torpid bats and found differences in microclimate use among the 3 most common species. In general, abundance of torpid bats in our region of study was similar to those in the western United States, with aggregations of tens to a few hundred individuals per cave, and was lower than in the eastern United States where a cave may hold thousands of individuals. Knowledge of bat hibernation is crucial for developing conservation and management strategies on current conditions while accommodating environmental changes and other threats such as emerging diseases.
{"title":"Hibernacula of bats in Mexico, the southernmost records of hibernation in North America","authors":"Daniel Ramos-H., Ganesh Marín, Daniela Cafaggi, Cárol Sierra-Durán, Aarón Romero-Ruíz, Rodrigo A Medellín","doi":"10.1093/jmammal/gyae027","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae027","url":null,"abstract":"Although Mexico holds the southernmost hibernating bats in North America, information on winter behavior and hibernacula microclimate use of temperate Mexican bats is limited. We studied hibernating bats at high altitudes (>1,000 m a.s.l.) in northern and central Mexico during 5 consecutive winters. Our aims were to document and describe the hibernacula, winter behavior (such as abundance and roost pattern), and microclimates (estimated as adjacent substrate temperature) of cave-hibernating bats in Mexico. We found 78 hibernacula and 6,089 torpid bats of 10 vespertilionid species, increasing by over 50% the number of cave-hibernating bat species and quadrupling the number of hibernacula for Mexico. Hibernacula were at altitudes between 1,049 and 3,633 m a.s.l., located in 3 mountain ranges, mainly in oak and conifer forests. Myotis velifer was the most common species, followed by Corynorhinus townsendii and C. mexicanus. We recorded the adjacent substrate temperatures from 9 species totaling 1,106 torpid bats and found differences in microclimate use among the 3 most common species. In general, abundance of torpid bats in our region of study was similar to those in the western United States, with aggregations of tens to a few hundred individuals per cave, and was lower than in the eastern United States where a cave may hold thousands of individuals. Knowledge of bat hibernation is crucial for developing conservation and management strategies on current conditions while accommodating environmental changes and other threats such as emerging diseases.","PeriodicalId":50157,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Mammalogy","volume":"28 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.7,"publicationDate":"2024-05-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140839934","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}