Roost selection by non-breeding Leisler's bats (Nyctalus leisleri) in montane woodlands: implications for habitat management

• Autorzy: Spada M. , Szentkuti S. , Zambelli N. , Mattei-Roesli M. , Moretti M. , Bontadina F. , Arlettaz R. , Tosi G. , Martinoli A.
• Języki publikacji: EN

Abstrakty

EN

We investigated roost selection by Leisler's bat (Nyctalus leisleri) before and after hibernation in 2005 in a mountain area of southern Switzerland. The study area is dominated by deciduous trees and characterised by the presence of previously managed chestnut (Castanea sativa) orchards that are now partly abandoned. In March–May and August–October, 15 radio-tracked bats (seven males and eight females) used 28 roost trees. We analysed roosts used by N. leisleri at three different levels: (i) micro-scale: features of roost cavities; (ii) meso-scale: characteristics of selected roost trees and (iii) macro-scale: structure of woodland surrounding roost trees. Selection at meso and macro-scales was obtained comparing characteristics of roost trees and surrounding woodland with potentially available trees and woodlands. Bats roosted mainly in live chestnut trees, with large diameter and absence of vegetation near the entrance. Roost trees were located closer to streams, in woodlands with a higher percentage of sweet chestnut trees and a lower tree density than random trees. Multifunctional forest management in abandoned chestnut stands, comprising recreation (chestnut harvesting) and preservation of a semi-natural habitat and its related biodiversity, would recreate the traditional woodland features – in particular an open forest structure with low tree density and presence of ancient chestnut trees – and provide suitable roosting sites to migratory N. leisleri.

Słowa kluczowe

EN

roost selection; non-breeding animal; Leisler's bat; lesser noctule zob.Leisler's bat; Nyctalus leisleri; bat; montane woodland; forest composition; habitat management; Switzerland

• Wydawca: -
• Czasopismo: Acta Chiropterologica
• Rocznik: 2008
• Tom: 10
• Numer: 1
• Opis fizyczny: p.81-88,ref.

Twórcy

autor

Spada M.

• Dipartimento Ambiente-Salute-Sicurezza, Universita degli Studi dell'Insubria, Via J.H. Dunant 3, 21100 Varese, Italy

autor

Szentkuti S.

• Conservation Biology, Zoological Institute, University of Bern, Baltzerstrasse 6, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland

autor

Zambelli N.

• Centro Protezione Chirotteri Ticino (CPT), CH-6714 Semione, Switzerland

autor

Mattei-Roesli M.

• Centro Protezione Chirotteri Ticino (CPT), CH-6714 Semione, Switzerland

autor

Moretti M.

• WSL Swiss Federal Research Institute, Sottostazione Sud delle Alpi, Via Belsoggiorno 22, CH-6501 Bellinzona, Switzerland

autor

Bontadina F.

• Conservation Biology, Zoological Institute, University of Bern, Baltzerstrasse 6, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland

autor

Arlettaz R.

• Conservation Biology, Zoological Institute, University of Bern, Baltzerstrasse 6, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland

autor

Tosi G.

• Dipartimento Ambiente-Salute-Sicurezza, Universita degli Studi dell'Insubria, Via J.H. Dunant 3, 21100 Varese, Italy

autor

Martinoli A.

• Dipartimento Ambiente-Salute-Sicurezza, Universita degli Studi dell'Insubria, Via J.H. Dunant 3, 21100 Varese, Italy

Bibliografia

• 1. P. Agnelli, A. Martinoli, E. Patriarca, D. Russo, D. Scaravelli, and P. Genovesi . 2004. Guidelines for bat monitoring: methods for the study and conservation of bats in Italy. Quaderni di Conservazione della Natura, 19 bis, Ministero dell'Ambiente — Istituto Nazionale per la Fauna Selvatica, Rome and Ozzano dell'Emilia (Bologna), Italy. 193. pp. Google Scholar
• 2. J. D. Altringham 1996. Bats biology and behaviour Oxford University Press Inc. Oxford. 262. pp. Google Scholar
• 3. R. M R. Barclay, C. E. Thomason, and F. J S. Phelan . 1982. Screech owl, Otus asio, attempting to capture little brown bats, Myotis lucifugus, at a colony. Canadian Field-Naturalist 96:205–206. Google Scholar
• 4. W. Bogdanowicz and A. L. Ruprecht . 2004. Nyctalus leisleri (Kuhl, 1817). Pp 717–756. in Handbuch der Säugetiere Europas F. Krapp , editor. ed. Bd 4/II, Teil II. Aula-Verlag. Wiebelsheim. 582. pp. Google Scholar
• 5. M. Boonman 2000. Roost selection by noctules (Nyctalus noctula) and Daubenton's bats (Myotis daubentonii). Journal of Zoology (London) 251:385–389. Google Scholar
• 6. E. R. Britzke, M. J. Harvey, and S. C. Loeb . 2003. Indiana bat, Myotis sodalis, maternity roosts in the southern United States. Southeastern Naturalist 2:235–242. Google Scholar
• 7. E. L. Bull, C. G. Parks, and T. R. Torgenson . 1997. Trees and logs important to wildlife in the interior Columbia Basins. U.S. Forest Service General Technical Report PNW-391. 57. pp. Google Scholar
• 8. Chiroptera Specialist Group 1996. Nyctalus leisleri. In IUCN red list of threatened species. http://www.iucnredlist.org. Downloaded on 27 February 2008. Google Scholar
• 9. D. G. Constantine 1966. Ecological observations of lasiurine bats in Georgia. Journal of Mammalogy 47:1347–1358. Google Scholar
• 10. G. B. Corbet and S. Harris . 1991. Handbook of British mammals 3rd editionBlackwell. Oxford. 602. pp. Google Scholar
• 11. W. R. Dillon and M. Goldstein . 1984. Multivariate analysis: methods and applications Wiley and Sons. New York. 608. pp. Google Scholar
• 12. ESRI 1996. Using ArcView GIS Environmental Systems Research Institute, Inc. Redlands, California. 340. pp. Google Scholar
• 13. J. B. Faliński 1986. Vegetation dynamics in low temperate lowland primeval forest: ecological studies in Bialowieża forest. Pp 39–111. in Geobotany 8 J. B. Faliński , editor. ed. Dr. W. Junk Publishers. Dordrecht. 537. pp. Google Scholar
• 14. M. B. Fenton 1997. Science and the conservation of bats. Journal of Mammalogy 84:1–14. Google Scholar
• 15. J. S. Findley 1993. Bats. A community perspective Cambridge University Press. Cambridge. 167. pp. Google Scholar
• 16. J. Gaisler, V. Hanák, and J. Dungel . 1979. A contribution to the population ecology of Nyctalus noctula (Mammalia: Chiroptera). Acta Scientiarum Naturalium Academiae Scientiarum Bohemoslovacae, Brno 13:1–38. Google Scholar
• 17. L. Grinevitch, S. L. Holroyd, and R. M R. Barclay . 1995. Sex differences in the use of daily torpor and foraging time by big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus) during the reproductive season. Journal of Zoology (London) 235:301–309. Google Scholar
• 18. J. Hausser 1996. Säugetiere der Schweiz: Verbreitung, Biologie, Ökologie. Im Auftrag der Schweizerischen Gesell-shaft für Wildtierbiologie Denkschriftenkommission der Schweizerischen Akademie der Naturwissenshaften. Basel and Birkhäuser, Berlin. 501. pp. Google Scholar
• 19. P. F. Heerdt and J. W. Sluiter . 1965. Notes on the distribution and behaviour of the Noctule bat (Nyctalus leisleri) in Netherlands. Mammalia 29:463–346. Google Scholar
• 20. P. N. Hooge and B. Eichenlaub . 1997. Animal movement extention to ArcView, version 1.1. U.S. Department of the Interior, Geological Survey Alaska Biological Science Center. Anchorage. 28. pp. Google Scholar
• 21. A. M. Hutson, S. P. Mickleburgh, and P. A. Racey . (comp.). 2001. Microchiropteran bats: global status survey and conservation action plan IUCN. Gland. 256. pp. Google Scholar
• 22. R. Hutterer, T. Ivanova, C. Meyer-Cords, and L. Rodrigues . 2005. Bat migrations in Europe. A review of banding data and literature Bundesamt für Naturschutz. Bonn. 176. pp. Google Scholar
• 23. T. S. Jung, I. D. Thompson, and R. D. Titman . 2004. Roost site selection by forest-dwelling male Myotis in central Ontario, Canada. Forest Ecology and Management 202:325–335. Google Scholar
• 24. G. Kerth, K. Weissman, and B. König . 2001. Day roost selection in female Bechstein's bats (Myotis bechsteinii): a field experiment to determine influence of roost temperature. Oecologia 126:1–9. Google Scholar
• 25. F. Kronwitter 1988. Population structure, habitat use and activity patterns of the noctule bat Nyctalus noctula Schreb., 1774 (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) revealed by radio-tracking. Myotis 26:23–85. Google Scholar
• 26. T. H. Kunz , editor. (ed.). 1988. Ecological and behavioral models for the study of bats Smithsonian Institution Press. Washington D. C. 533. pp. Google Scholar
• 27. T. H. Kunz and L. F. Lumsden . 2003. Ecology of cavity and foliage roosting bats. Pp 3–90. in Bat ecology T. H. Kunz and M. B. Fenton , editors. eds. The University of Chicago Press. Chicago. 789. pp. Google Scholar
• 28. B. S. Law and J. Anderson . 2000. Roost preferences and foraging ranges of the eastern forest bat Vespadelus pumilus under two disturbance histories in northern New South Wales, Australia. Australian Ecology 25:352–367. Google Scholar
• 29. M. J. Mazurek and W. J. Zielinski . 2004. Individual legacy trees influence vertebrate wildlife diversity in commercial forests. Forest Ecology and Management 193:321–334. Google Scholar
• 30. C. Mcaney and J. Fairley . 1990. Activity of Leisler's bat Nyctalus leisleri at a summer roost in Ireland. Myotis 28:83–91. Google Scholar
• 31. A. J. Mitchell-Jones, G. Amori, W. Bogdanowicz, B. Kryštufek, P. J H. Rejinders, F. Spitzenberger, M. Stubbe, J. B M. Thissen, V. Vohralík, and J. Zima . 1999. The atlas of European mammals Academic Press. London. 496. pp. Google Scholar
• 32. M. Moretti, M. Roesli, A. S. Gamboni, and T. Maddalena . 2003. I pipistrelli del Cantone Ticino. Memorie della Società Ticinese di Scienze Naturali 6:1–9. Google Scholar
• 33. U. Norberg and J. Rayner . 1987. Ecological morphology and flight in bats (Mammalia, Chiroptera): wing adaptation, flight performance, foraging strategy and echolocation. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London 316B:335–427. Google Scholar
• 34. B. Ohlendorf, B. Hecht, D. Strassburg, and P. Agirre-Mendi . 2000. Fernfund eines Kleinabendseglers (Nyctalus leisleri) in Spanien. Nyctalus 7:239–242. Google Scholar
• 35. G. Olioso 1999. Une nouvelle Noctule de Leisler, Nyctalus leisleri, baguée trouvée en France. Arvicola 11:9. Google Scholar
• 36. M. Paclík and K. Weidinger . 2007. Microclimate of tree cavities during winter nights — implications for roost site selection in birds. International Journal of Biometeorology 51:287–293. Google Scholar
• 37. M. J. Rabe, T. E. Morrel, H. Green, J. C. de Vos, and C. R. Miller . 1998. Characteristics of Ponderosa pine snags used by reproductive bats in northern Arizona. Journal of Wildlife Management 62:612–621. Google Scholar
• 38. P. A. Racey 1973. Environmental factors affecting the length of gestation in heterotermic bats. Journal of Reproduction and Fertility, Supplement 19:175–189. Google Scholar
• 39. P. A. Racey and S. M. Swift . 1981. Variations in gestation lenght in colony of pipistrelle bats (Pipistrellus pipistrellus) from year to year. Journal of Reproduction and Fertility, Supplement 19:175–189. Google Scholar
• 40. I. Ruczyński and W. Bogdanowicz . 2005. Roost cavity selection by Nyctalus noctula and N. leisleri (Vespertilionidae, Chiroptera) in Białowieża primeval forest, Eastern Poland. Journal of Mammalogy 86:921–930. Google Scholar
• 41. J. M. Russ, M. Briffa, and W. I. Montgomery . 2003. Seasonal pattern activity and habitat use by bats (Pipistrellus spp. and Nyctalus leisleri) in Northern Ireland, determined using a driven transect. Journal of Zoology (London) 259:289–299. Google Scholar
• 42. D. Russo and G. Jones . 2003. Use of foraging habitats by bats in a Mediterranean survey: conservation implications. Ecography 26:197–209. Google Scholar
• 43. D. Russo, L. Cistrone, G. Jones, and S. Mazzoleni . 2004. Roost selection by barbastelle bats (Barbastella barbastellus, Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) in beech woodlands of central Italy: consequences for conservation. Biological Conservation 117:73–81. Google Scholar
• 44. D. Russo, D. Almenar, J. Aihartza, U. Goiti, E. Salsamendi, and I. Garin . 2005. Habitat selection in sympatric Rhinolophus mehelyi and R. euryale (Mammalia: Chiroptera). Journal of Zoology (London) 266:327–332. Google Scholar
• 45. J. Rydell, A. Entwistle, and P. A. Racey . 1996. Timing of foraging flights of three species of bats in relation to insect activity and predation risk. Oikos 76:531–535. Google Scholar
• 46. SAS 1999. SAS STAT users guide, version v 8.0. SAS Institute Inc. Cary, North Carolina. Google Scholar
• 47. A. Schmidt 1988. Beobachtungen zur Lebensweise des Abendseglers, Nyctalus noctula (Schreber, 1774), im Süden des Bezirkes Frankfurt/O. Nyctalus (N.F.) 5:389–422. Google Scholar
• 48. Secemu (Sociedad Española para la Conservación y el Estudio de los Murciélagos) 1999. Informe sobre la campana de anillamiento de murcielagos en Espana. Ano 1998. Ecologia 13:459–461. Google Scholar
• 49. J. A. Sedgeley 2001. Quality of activity microclimate as factor influencing selection of maternity roosts by a tree-dwelling bat, Chalinolobus tuberculatus, in New Zealand. Journal of Applied Ecology 38:425–438. Google Scholar
• 50. J. A. Sedgeley and C. F J. O'Donnell . 1999. Roost selection by the long-tailed bat Chalinolobus tuberculatus, in temperate New Zealand rainforest and its implication for the conservation of bats in managed forests. Biological Conservation 88:261–276. Google Scholar
• 51. J. A. Sedgeley and C. F J. O'Donnell . 2004. Roost use by long-tailed bats in South Canterbury: examining predictions of roost-site selection in a highly fragmented landscape. New Zealand Journal of Ecology 28:1–18. Google Scholar
• 52. C. B. Shiel, R. E. Shiel, and J. S. Fairley . 1999. Seasonal changes in the foraging behaviour of Leisler's bats (Nyctalus leisleri) in Ireland as revealed by radio-telemetry. Journal of Zoology (London) 249:347–358. Google Scholar
• 53. R. R. Sokal and F. J. Rohlf . 1995. Biometry: the principles and practice of statistics in biological research, 2nd edition Freeman. New York. 880. pp. Google Scholar
• 54. R. E. Stebbings 1988. Conservation of European bats Christopher Helm. London. 246. pp. Google Scholar
• 55. B. Stratmann 1978. Faunistisch-ökologische Beobachtungen an einer Population von Nyctalus noctula im Revier Ecktannen des StFB Waren (Müritz). Nyctalus 1:2–22. Google Scholar
• 56. N. Vaughan, G. Jones, and S. Harris . 1997. Habitat use by bats (Chiroptera) assessed by means of broad-band acoustic method. Journal of Applied Ecology 34:716–730. Google Scholar
• 57. M. J. Vonhof and R. M R. Barclay . 1996. Roost-site selection and roosting ecology of forest-dwelling bats in southern British Columbia. Canadian Journal of Zoology 74:1797–1805. Google Scholar
• 58. D. Waters, G. Jones, and M. Furlong . 1999. Foraging ecology of Leisler's bat (Nyctalus leisleri) at two sites in southern Britain. Journal of Zoology (London) 249:173–180. Google Scholar
• 59. K. Wiebe 2001. Microclimate of tree cavity nests: is it important for reproductive success in northern flickers. The Auk 118:412–421. Google Scholar