Search

White‐nose syndrome (WNS) is a disease caused by the fungus Pseudogymnoascus destructans which has resulted in the deaths of millions of bats across eastern North America. To date, hibernacula counts have been the predominant means of tracking the spread and impact of this disease on bat populations. However, an understanding of the impacts of WNS on demographic parameters outside the winter season is critical to conservation and recovery of bat populations impacted by this disease. We used long‐term monitoring data to examine WNS‐related impacts to summer populations in West Virginia, where WNS has been documented since 2009. Using capture data from 290 mist‐net sites surveyed from 2003 to 2019 on the Monongahela National Forest, we estimated temporal patterns in presence and relative abundance for each bat species. For species that exhibited a population‐level response to WNS, we investigated post‐WNS changes in adult female reproductive state and body mass. Myotis lucifugus (little brown bat), M. septentrionalis (northern long‐eared bat), and Perimyotis subflavus (tri‐colored bat) all showed significant decreases in presence and relative abundance during and following the introduction of WNS, while Eptesicus fuscus (big brown bat) and Lasiurus borealis (eastern red bat) responded positively during the WNS invasion. Probability of being reproductively active was not significantly different for any species, though a shift to earlier reproduction was estimated for E. fuscus and M. septentrionalis. For some species, body mass appeared to be influenced by the WNS invasion, but the response differed by species and reproductive state. Results suggest that continued long‐term monitoring studies, additional research into impacts of this disease on the fitness of WNS survivors, and a focus on providing optimal nonwintering habitat may be valuable strategies for assessing and promoting recovery of WNS‐affected bat populations., We used long‐term monitoring data to examine impacts from white‐nose syndrome on summer bat populations in West Virginia. The little brown bat, northern long‐eared bat, and tri‐colored bat all showed significant decreases in survey presence and relative abundance during and following the introduction of WNS, while the big brown bat and eastern red bat responded positively to the WNS invasion. We also investigate post‐WNS changes in adult female reproduction and body mass for those species in the study area.

Background White-nose Syndrome (WNS) has reduced the abundance of many bat species within the United States’ Mid-Atlantic region. To determine changes within the National Park Service National Capital Region (NCR) bat communities, we surveyed the area with mist netting and active acoustic sampling (2016–2018) and compared findings to pre-WNS (2003–2004) data. Results The results indicated the continued presence of the threatened Myotis septentrionalis (Northern Long-eared bat) and species of conservation concern, including Perimyotis subflavus (Tri-colored bat), Myotis leibii (Eastern Small-footed bat) and Myotis lucifugus (Little Brown bat). However, we documented a significant reduction in the abundance and distribution of M. lucifugus and P. subflavus, a decrease in the distribution of M. septentrionalis, and an increase in the abundance of Eptesicus fuscus (Big Brown bat). Conclusions Documented post-WNS M. septentrionalis recruitment suggests that portions of the NCR may be important bat conservation areas. Decreases in distribution and abundance of P. subflavus and M. lucifugus indicate probable extirpation from many previously occupied portions of the region.

Artificial light at night (ALAN) is a rapidly intensifying form of environmental degradation that can impact wildlife by altering light‐mediated physiological processes that control a broad range of behaviors. Although nocturnal animals are most vulnerable, ALAN's effects on North American bats have been surprisingly understudied. Most of what is known is based on decades‐old observations of bats around street lights with traditional lighting technologies that have been increasingly replaced by energy‐efficient broad‐spectrum lighting, rendering our understanding of the contemporary effects of ALAN on North American bats even less complete. We experimentally tested the effects of broad‐spectrum ALAN on presence/absence, foraging activity, and species composition in a Connecticut, USA bat community by illuminating foraging habitat with light‐emitting diode (LED) floodlights and comparing acoustic recordings between light and dark conditions. Lighting dramatically decreased presence and activity of little brown bats (Myotis lucifugus), which we detected on only 14% of light nights compared with 65% of dark (lights off) and 69% of control (lights removed) nights. Big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus) activity on light nights averaged only half that of dark and control nights. Lighting did not affect presence/absence of silver‐haired bats (Lasionycteris noctivagans), but decreased their activity. There were no effects on eastern red bats (Lasiurus borealis) or hoary bats (L. cinereus), which have been described previously as light‐tolerant. Aversion to lighting by some species but not others caused a significant shift in community composition, thereby potentially altering competitive balances from natural conditions. Our results demonstrate that only a small degree of ALAN can represent a significant form of habitat degradation for some North American bats, including the endangered little brown bat. Research on the extent to which different lighting technologies, colors, and intensities affect these species is urgently needed and should be a priority in conservation planning for North America's bats., Experimental lighting of a wetland foraging habitat in Connecticut, USA reduced the presence and/or activity of big brown bats, little brown bats, and silver‐haired bats, while having no effect on the presence or activity of eastern red bats and hoary bats. This aversion to the lighting by some bat species but not others resulted in a significant change in community composition, thereby potentially altering competitive balances from natural conditions.

During winter hibernation, bats may become active for a variety of reasons. Such winter activity occurs at or near hibernacula, but the degree to which this activity represents long-distance travel across a wider landscape largely is unstudied. We documented patterns in landscape-wide winter activity across a west-central Indiana study site, providing some new insights into winter flight activity. We deployed acoustic recording devices in areas without any known hibernacula, each night from December through March over three consecutive winters. Twilight temperatures (1 h post-sunset) ranged from −23°C to 21°C across three winters. We recorded 4,392 call files and attributed 89% to a phonic group based on characteristic frequencies. Flight activity was recorded at all stations and during all winter months. Nightly activity mainly was a function of the temperature on that night. We recorded low-phonic bats (most likely big brown bats, Eptesicus fuscus) down to −4°C, but most activity occurred when twilight temperatures were > 0°C. Mid-phonic bat activity (most likely eastern red bats, Lasiurus borealis) occurred when temperatures were > 0°C, with most activity occurring when temperatures were > 5°C. Wind speeds > 6 m/s tended to suppress activity. The duration of inactive periods during cold spells had no effect on activity during subsequent warm nights, indicating no increasing drive for activity following long periods of inactivity. Most activity occurred within a few hours of sunset, regardless of temperature. Little pre-sunset activity was recorded in low-phonic bats, but mid-phonic bats sometimes were active in the hour before sunset. Our results suggest widespread and potentially long-distance travel by bats across our study area during warm periods, but the impetus behind this activity remains unclear.

Renewable energy sources, such as wind energy, are essential tools for reducing the causes of climate change, but wind turbines can pose a collision risk for bats. To date, the population‐level effects of wind‐related mortality have been estimated for only 1 bat species. To estimate temporal trends in bat abundance, we considered wind turbines as opportunistic sampling tools for flying bats (analogous to fishing nets), where catch per unit effort (carcass abundance per monitored turbine) is a proxy for aerial abundance of bats, after accounting for seasonal variation in activity. We used a large, standardized data set of records of bat carcasses from 594 turbines in southern Ontario, Canada, and corrected these data to account for surveyor efficiency and scavenger removal. We used Bayesian hierarchical models to estimate temporal trends in aerial abundance of bats and to explore the effect of spatial factors, including landscape features associated with bat habitat (e.g., wetlands, croplands, and forested lands), on the number of mortalities for each species. The models showed a rapid decline in the abundance of 4 species in our study area; declines in capture of carcasses over 7 years ranged from 65% (big brown bat [Eptesicus fuscus]) to 91% (silver‐haired bat [Lasionycteris noctivagans]). Estimated declines were independent of the effects of mitigation (increasing wind speed at which turbines begin to generate electricity from 3.5 to 5.5 m/s), which significantly reduced but did not eliminate bat mortality. Late‐summer mortality of hoary (Lasiurus cinereus), eastern red (Lasiurus borealis), and silver‐haired bats was predicted by woodlot cover, and mortality of big brown bats decreased with increasing elevation. These landscape predictors of bat mortality can inform the siting of future wind energy operations. Our most important result is the apparent decline in abundance of four common species of bat in the airspace, which requires further investigation., Article impact statement: Data from 594 wind turbines suggest rapid declines in abundance for 4 common species of bat and identify spatial predictors of bat mortality at turbines.

A large number of bat fatalities have been reported in wind energy facilities in different regions globally. Wind farm operators are required to monitor bat fatalities by conducting carcass surveys at wind farms. A previous study implemented the ballistics model to characterize the carcass fall zone distributions after a bat is struck by turbine blades. The ballistics model considers the aerodynamic drag force term, which is dependent upon the carcass drag coefficient. The bat carcass drag coefficient is highly uncertain; no measurement of it is available. This paper introduces a methodology for bat carcass drag coefficient estimation. Field investigation at Macksburg wind farm resulted in the discovery of three bat species: the hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus), eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis), and evening bat (Nycticeius humeralis). Carcass drop experiments were performed from a dropping platform at finite height, and carcass position time series data were recorded using a high-speed camera. Falling carcasses were subjected to aerodynamic drag and gravitational forces. Carcasses were observed to undergo rotation, often rotating around multiple axes simultaneously, as well as lateral translation. The complex fall dynamics, along with drop from a limited height, prohibit the carcasses from attaining terminal velocity. Under this limitation, the drag coefficient is estimated by fitting a ballistics model to the measured velocity. Multivariable optimization was performed to fit the ballistics model to the measured velocity resulting, in an optimized estimate of the drag coefficient. A sensitivity analysis demonstrated significant variation in the drag coefficient with a small change in initial position, highlighting the chaotic nature of carcass fall dynamics. Based on the limited sample, the bat carcass drag coefficient and terminal velocity were found to be between 0.70–1.23 and 6.63–17.57 m s−1, respectively. The maximum distance carcasses are predicted to fall after impact with a typical utility-scale onshore wind turbine was computed using a 2-D ballistics model. Based on the range of drag coefficients found in this study, hoary and evening bats are estimated to fall within the rotor plane up to a maximum distance of 92 and 62 m, respectively, from the wind turbine tower. The ballistics model of carcasses after being struck by wind turbine blades can be used to obtain fall distributions for bats, guide carcass survey efforts, and correct survey data for limited or unsearched areas.

Prescribed fires are a forest management tool used to improve natural areas for a variety of benefits including increased plant diversity, reduced competition for desired species, decreased fuel loads, and improved wildlife habitat. The post-fire results in landscapes have shown positive benefits for bat populations. However, prescribed fires set in the winter may cause direct mortality of eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis) populations that use leaf litter for roosting during periods of colder (&lt, 10 °C) temperatures. Therefore, we used controlled laboratory techniques to explore if eastern red bats arouse from torpor when exposed to cues associated with fire (i.e., smoke and the sound of fire). Through subsequent field trials, we confirmed latencies of first response (i.e., movement or increased respiration), arousal, and flight behaviors to the stimuli of fire. We provide evidence of smoke influencing eastern red bat first response and arousal through laboratory and field trial results. Latencies of all behaviors were negatively correlated with temperatures and wind speeds prior to and during field trials. We recommend prescribing winter fires on days when temperatures are &gt, 10 °C to provide eastern red bats with a better chance to passively rewarm and react to an approaching fire.

Temperate bat species use extended torpor to conserve energy when ambient temperatures are low and food resources are scarce. Previous research suggests that migratory bat species and species known to roost in thermally unstable locations, such as those that roost in trees, are more likely to remain active during winter. However, hibernating colonies of cave roosting bats in the southeastern United States may also be active and emerge from caves throughout the hibernation period. We report what bats are eating during these bouts of winter activity. We captured 2,044 bats of 10 species that emerged from six hibernacula over the course of 5 winters (October–April 2012/2013, 2013/2014, 2015/2016, 2016/2017, and 2017/2018). Using Next Generation sequencing of DNA from 284 fecal samples, we determined bats consumed at least 14 Orders of insect prey while active. Dietary composition did not vary among bat species; however, we did record variation in the dominant prey items represented in species’ diets. We recorded Lepidoptera in the diet of 72.2% of individual Corynorhinus rafinesquii and 67.4% of individual Lasiurus borealis. Diptera were recorded in 32.4% of Myotis leibii, 37.4% of M. lucifugus, 35.5% of M. sodalis and 68.8% of Perimyotis subflavus. Our study is the first to use molecular genetic techniques to identify the winter diet of North American hibernating bats. The information from this study is integral to managing the landscape around bat hibernacula for insect prey, particularly in areas where hibernating bat populations are threatened by white-nose syndrome.

The monitoring of bats across the world is mostly conducted using invasive mist-netting, whereby vertical nets are placed to capture bats mid-flight. Many studies have demonstrated how this approach causes sampling bias, is labor-intensive and increases the risk of white-nose syndrome fungus, Pseudogymnoascus destructans, transmission among bats. Increasingly, acoustic devices are being employed to collect data on bat activity and richness. Community-based monitoring is an important data collection source for bat monitoring programs in countries such as the UK (National Bat Monitoring Program), whereby walking bat transects are conducted using bat detectors. Since the launch of smartphone devices to record and auto-identify bat echolocation calls, the quality of data collection that community members can collect has increased significantly, however, this approach is seldom used to generate data in scientific studies. In our study, we have showcased how our study design paired with state of the art acoustic monitoring devices, can be applied to community-based monitoring of bats across the world. Through employing smartphone acoustic devices, we have determined how primary and secondary vegetation cover are predictors of bat species occurrence and identified the importance of riverine and deciduous swamp habitats for rare bat species in southwestern Ontario.

White-nose syndrome (WNS), an epizootic disease caused by an invasive fungus, threatens bat populations across North America. WNS-induced changes in summer bat populations could impact functional diversity. We assessed the shift in relative abundance within an assemblage of bats in a temperate southern Appalachian forest in North Carolina and Tennessee from 2009 through 2016. We used mixed linear effects models to identify bat species significantly impacted by WNS and those showing resistance, and to determine effects on reproductive rates for WNS-affected species. Four once-common species — the little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus), Indiana bat (M. sodalis), northern long-eared bat (M. septentrionalis), and tri-colored bat (Perimyotis subflavus) — showed significant and dramatic declines (82–99%), while the big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus), red bat (Lasiurus borealis), Rafinesque’s big-eared bat (Corynorhinus rafinesquii), and small-footed bat (M. leibii) did not decline significantly after WNS was detected on the landscape. We detected no significant interactions between reproductive condition and WNS period (pre- and post-arrival of the disease). Declines in summer populations mirrored declines detected in nearby winter hibernacula. Because the loss of WNS-affected bat species could negatively impact ecosystem health, it is important to monitor bat, insect, and plant community responses wherever WNS threatens bats. We hypothesize that, in the absence of small-bodied bats, there might be increases in populations of small forest pests, such as defoliating moths, as larger WNS-resistant bats may avoid or miss these small prey.

Bats are facing threats from disease, wind power development, and climate change, which are causing populations of many species to decline. The northern range limits of many temperate species are not well characterized, but the true distribution of threatened bat species is critical information for their conservation. We used passive acoustic monitoring and false-positive occupancy models to estimate the distributions of six species of bats in northern Ontario (north of ca. 50.5°N). We confirmed the presence of big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus), hoary bats (Lasiurus cinereus), eastern red bats (Lasiurus borealis), silver-haired bats (Lasionycteris noctivagans), little brown myotis (Myotis lucifugus), northern long-eared myotis (Myotis septentrionalis), and tri-colored bats (Perimyotis subflavus) in our study area. We found that big brown bats, hoary bats, and little brown myotis likely are more widespread and common in northern Ontario than previously thought. Our models also provided evidence of associations between temperature and habitat types and bat occupancy probabilities. Our occupancy probability maps for each species support bat conservation by providing much finer-scale distribution information than previously available. These results provide a much-needed baseline for future studies of the distribution of these bat species in northern Ontario against which to measure the effects of white-nose syndrome, resource development, and climate change.

Understanding seasonal variation in the distribution and movement patterns of migratory species is essential to monitoring and conservation efforts. While there are many species of migratory bats in North America, little is known about their seasonal movements. In terms of conservation, this is important because the bat fatalities from wind energy turbines are significant and may fluctuate seasonally. Here we describe seasonally resolved distributions for the three species that are most impacted by wind farms (Lasiurus borealis(eastern red bat),L. cinereus(hoary bat) andLasionycteris noctivagans(silver-haired bat)) and use these distributions to infer their most likely migratory pathways. To accomplish this, we collected 2,880 occurrence points from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility over five decades in North America to model species distributions on a seasonal basis and used an ensemble approach for modeling distributions. This dataset included 1,129 data points forL. borealis, 917 forL. cinereusand 834 forL. noctivagans. The results suggest that all three species exhibit variation in distributions from north to south depending on season, with each species showing potential migratory pathways during the fall migration that follow linear features. Finally, we describe proposed migratory pathways for these three species that can be used to identify stop-over sites, assess small-scale migration and highlight areas that should be prioritized for actions to reduce the effects of wind farm mortality.

Emerging pathogens can cause mass mortalities in susceptible species. High host mortality, in turn, can alter species composition, community structure and function. White-nose syndrome (WNS) is an emerging wildlife disease introduced to North America that has decimated millions of cave-dependent bats. For areas affected by WNS, there have been reports of community compositional changes, but compensatory changes to species composition following WNS has only been suggested, not reported. To determine if compensatory changes to species composition occur following WNS, we used seven years of data from statewide citizen science mobile bat acoustic routes initiated by the Ohio Division of Wildlife in 2011. We hypothesized that migratory bat abundance increased and cave-dependent bat abundance decreased following the emergence of WNS in the study period (2011–2017). Our hypothesis was based on the higher susceptibility of cave-dependent bats than migratory bats to infection and WNS mortality. We used two sets of models to identify abundance trends of each species found in Ohio and species grouped by wintering and roosting behaviors that are putatively important to changes in species composition post-WNS. Following WNS, we found a compensatory change in species in summer months from cave-dependent, cavity-roosting species (Myotis species and Eptesicus fuscus) to migratory, cavity-roosting species (Nycticeius humeralis and Lasionycteris noctivagans). However, for species that roost in foliage in the summer, we did not detect an increase in migratory species (Lasiurus borealis and Lasiurus cinereus) paired with a decrease in cave-dependent species (Perimyotis subflavus). The observed post-WNS trends in bat populations could suggest shifts in bat species composition in other areas where WNS is established.

Global light pollution threatens to disturb numerous wildlife species, but impacts of artificial light will likely vary among species within a community. Thus, artificial lights may change the environment in such a way as to create winners and losers as some species benefit while others do not. Insectivorous bats are nocturnal and a good model to test for differential effects of light pollution on a single community. We used a physiological technique to address this community-level question by measuring plasma ß-hydroxybutyrate (a blood metabolite) concentrations from six species of insectivorous bats in lit and unlit conditions. We also recorded bat calls acoustically to measure activity levels between experimental conditions. Blood metabolite level and acoustic activity data suggest species-specific changes in foraging around lights. In red bats (Lasiurus borealis), ß-hydroxybutyrate levels at lit sites were highest early in the night before decreasing. Acoustic data indicate pronounced peaks in activity at lit sites early in the night. In red bats on dark nights and in the other species in this community, which seem to avoid lights, ß-hydroxybutyrate remained relatively constant. Our results suggest red bats are more willing to expend energy to actively forage around lights despite potential negative impacts, while other, generally rarer species avoid lit areas. Artificial light appears to have a bifurcating effect on bat communities, whereby some species take advantage of concentrated prey resources, yet most do not. Further, this may concentrate light-intolerant species into limited dark refugia, thereby increasing competition for depauperate, phototactic insect communities.

Nantucket, Massachusetts, could provide unique habitat for bats, but few data are available regarding bat populations on the island. We conducted passive acoustic surveys in 2015 and 2016 to inventory bat species and identify seasonal activity patterns. We detected at least 6 species of bats on Nantucket. Lasiurus cinereus (Hoary Bat) and Lasionycteris noctivagans (Silver-haired Bat) were detected as probable migrants, and Lasiurus borealis (Eastern Red Bat), Eptesicus fuscus (Big Brown Bat), and Myotis species were also present in summer. We detected Perimyotis subflavus (Tricolored Bat) in fall and early winter, suggesting that the species may hibernate on the island. In 2016, we mist-netted and radio-tagged Myotis septentrionalis (Northern Long-eared Bat), and documented individuals reproducing and hibernating on Nantucket. Given the persistence of this rare species on the island, we suggest that land-conservation organizations should consider maintenance of mature forest stands in their suite of planned management activities.

The western red bat (Lasiurus blossevillii) is a foliage-roosting species of riparian habitats in arid regions of the southwestern United States. Only limited published anecdotal observations exist for roost sites used by this species. Western red bats were split taxonomically from the eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis) in 1988, but summaries of roosting behaviors for western red bats still appear to stem from former associations with the commonly studied eastern red bat. Our study represents the first comprehensive research on the roosting ecology of western red bats. We radio-tracked 14 adult bats to 19 different day roosts along the Mimbres River of southwestern New Mexico. While we documented that western red bats had an affinity for densely foliated trees (79%), we did not detect any selection for tree species or size. At our study site, western red bats roosted in cottonwoods (47%, Populus spp.), velvet ash (21%, Fraxinus velutina), box elder (16%, Acer negundo), and red mulberry (16%, Morus rubra). We also described clustering behavior, where groups of 2–3 adults roosted in direct contact with one another. Although the species was deemed to roost solitarily, the frequency of clustering behavior in our study suggests otherwise. If bats were observed in clusters, they typically exhibited greater roosting fidelity than solitary individuals. Because arid riparian corridors in the southwestern United States generally are considered threatened systems, protection and preservation of mechanisms that create and maintain the diversity of these riparian corridors is necessary for the survival of this uncommon and poorly understood species.

Understanding foraging habits can be important for elucidating the ecology of any species and for designing appropriate conservation strategies. Common methods for determining bat diets, such as morphological examination of fecal material or recovery of prey fragments under feeding roosts, can be biased towards larger prey with harder exoskeletons by underestimating frequency/occurrence of smaller, softer bodied prey items. Our objectives were to determine prey selection for several common chiropteran species of bottomland hardwood forests in east Texas and to evaluate the use of DNA barcoding for dietary studies by comparing dietary composition to prey availability in four species of bats. We amplified the cytochrome coxidase subunit 1 gene from fecal samples collected from 19 bats of four species and identified arthropods by comparison to the Barcode of Life Data System database. We compared frequency of occurrence in fecal samples to frequency in concurrent night-flying insect sampling. We identified nine insect species from three orders consumed by Perimyotis subflavus, nine species from four orders consumed by Lasiurus seminolus, seven species from three orders consumed by Nycticeius humeralis, and 11 species from two orders consumed by Lasiurus borealis. Coleoptera was the most abundant order available by biomass, but beetles were never found in fecal samples from L. seminolus (n = 5) or L. borealis (n = 7) bats. However, Coleoptera comprised a substantial portion of prey identified from P. subflavus (n = 2) and N. humeralis samples (n = 5). Lepidopteran prey items were found in 13 of 19 bat fecal samples across all species but represented < 7% of arthropod biomass. Although dipteran species were a negligible portion (< 1%) of the available biomass, large numbers of dipterans were identified in fecal samples from all species of bats (13 of 19 samples across all species). Lasiurus seminolus and L. borealis may be selecting prey based on digestibility rather than availability; whereas, both N. humeralis and P. subflavus exhibited a more opportunistic approach to foraging. Based on comparison to other studies of bat diets, traditional techniques for analyzing diet from fecal samples are likely underrepresenting soft-bodied arthropods like dipterans.

The arrival of white-nose syndrome (WNS) to North America in 2006, and the subsequent decline in populations of cave-hibernating bats have potential long-term implications for communities of forest-dwelling bats in affected regions. Severe declines in wintering populations of bats should lead to concomitant shifts in the composition and relative abundance of species during the staging, maternity, and swarming seasons in nearby forested habitats. We examined capture rates of bats collected in mist nets from 2009 to 2016 to evaluate summer patterns in abundance of species pre- and post-arrival of WNS to Mammoth Cave National Park, KY. The data demonstrated a significant change in overall relative abundances. Myotis septentrionalis (Northern Long-eared Myotis) was the most commonly captured species pre-WNS but declined to 18.5% of its original abundance. Nycticeius humeralis (Evening Bat), uncommonly caught in mist nets pre-WNS, demonstrated the largest increase in capture success following arrival of WNS to the Park, followed by Eptesicus fuscus (Big Brown Bat) and Lasiurus borealis (Eastern Red Bat). These data suggest that losses of cave-hibernating bats to WNS may be leading to a restructuring of foraging bat assemblages in nearby forested habitats, with species less affected by WNS potentially exploiting niche space vacated by bats succumbing to infection with WNS.

For over a century there have been continual efforts to incorporate nature into urban planning. These efforts – known as urban reconciliation– aim to manage and create habitats that support biodiversity within cities. Given that species select habitat at different spatial scales, understanding the scale at which urban species respond to their environment is critical to the success of urban reconciliation efforts. We assessed species-habitat relationships for common bat species at local (50-m), medium (500-m), and broad (1-km) spatial scales in the Chicago metropolitan area and predicted bat activity across the greater Chicago region. We found that habitat characteristics across all measured scales were important predictors of silver-haired bat (Lasionycteris noctivagans) and eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis) activity, and big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus) activity was significantly lower at urban sites compared to rural sites. We also found that open vegetation had a negative effect on silver-haired bat activity at the local scale but a positive effect at the medium-sized scale, indicating potential shifts in the relative importance of some habitat characteristics at varying scales. These results demonstrate that local-scale effects may be constrained by broader spatial patterns. Our findings highlight the importance of considering scale in urban reconciliation efforts and our landscape predictions provide information that can help prioritize urban conservation work.

Time of peak bat activity during the night differs among bat species due to temperature, prey availability, habitat availability, and/or interactions between species. Habitat availability is altered in urban areas, which may affect insect prey availability and interspecies interactions. Our objectives were to use mobile acoustic monitoring to determine when bat species were active in a single night in urban and nonurban sites and if nightly bat activity patterns differed in urban versus nonurban sites. Bat echolocation call sequences were recorded using Anabat acoustic detectors while driving transects through the night at five sites (three “urban” and two “nonurban”) located in the Piedmont region of north-central North Carolina from May through August 2016. Transects were driven three times per night starting 45 min, 180 min, and 300 min after sunset. Recorded echolocation call sequences were analyzed manually using AnalookW and automatically using Bat Call Identification and Echoclass software. Total bat activity was not different between urban and nonurban sites. However, total bat activity was lower later in the night in urban sites, but stayed the same in nonurban sites. Species specifically, there were more Eptesicus fuscus, Lasionycteris noctivagans, and Tadarida brasiliensis call sequences and fewer Lasiurus borealis, Nycticeius humeralis, and Perimyotis subflavus call sequences in urban sites than nonurban sites. There were also fewer E. fuscus, L. noctivagans, and N. humeralis call sequences later in the night in both urban and nonurban sites. Only Lasiurus borealis activity in urban sites later in the night reduced and L. borealis activity in nonurban sites remained at the same. These results suggest that bats in urban areas partition time differently, which is important to consider for urban conservation efforts and planning.

The northeastern and mid-Atlantic coasts of the United States are important summer maternity habitat and seasonal migratory corridors for many species of bats. Additionally, the effects of weather on bat activity are relatively unknown beyond coarse nightly scales. Using acoustic detectors, we assessed nightly and hourly activity patterns for eight species of bats over 21 consecutive months at Fire Island National Seashore, New York. The site is an important bat conservation area because it hosts one of the few confirmed northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis) maternity colonies in the region despite their widespread extirpation due to white-nose syndrome (WNS). There have been no reported captures of little brown bats (M. lucifugus), Indiana bats (M. sodalis), or tri-colored bats (Perimyotis subflavus) at the site post-WNS. Overall, we found mean hourly temperature, time since sunset, day of year, and year to be the most important predictors of bat activity levels for all examined species. Most non-hibernating, migratory species in our study demonstrated a positive relationship to mean temperature at the hourly timescale, whereas cave-hibernating bats tended to show a negative relationship to mean temperature during the time of year when they are expected to be active. Although most bat activity occurred in the late spring through early autumn, peaking in summer, some activity occurred periodically in the winter months, mostly attributable to the big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus) and silver-haired bat (Lasionycteris noctivigans) phonic group. Unexpectedly, relationships of bat activity to wind and precipitation were largely equivocal. Initial presence (as early as March 30) and departure (between November 1-4) for northern long-eared bats at our study area occurred earlier in the spring and later in the fall than occurs for inland populations, suggesting that the species overwinters on Long Island rather than at inland karst caves or mines. A peak in spring activity characteristic of migratory behavior in the central Appalachians and Atlantic Coast was not observed at Fire Island, although Eastern red bats (Lasiurus borealis) and hoary bats (L. cinereus) - both migratory species - did show a notable rise in activity in the late summer and early fall, suggesting these populations may migrate to and from Fire Island. Understanding the temporal and weather relationships to bat activity in this coastal environment may have important implications for tailoring more effective conservation and management strategies by identifying optimal timing for surveys, tracking bats during peak migratory windows, and providing insights that minimizes impacts to extant bats from activities such as wind-energy development or land management, i.e., forestry. National Park Service, USA [P19AC01185] Published version We thank H. Taylor, K. Taylor, and S. Flanagan for field assistance. We would also like to thank our anonymous reviewers and associate editor. Funding for this research was provided by the National Park Service, USA, White-nose Syndrome Contract #P19AC01185 through the Cooperative Ecosystem Study Unit Program to Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, USA.

The reasons why bats are coming into contact with wind turbines are not yet well understood. One hypothesis is that bats are attracted to wind turbines and this attraction may be because bats perceive or misperceive the turbines to provide a resource, such as a foraging or roosting site. During post-construction fatality searches at a wind energy facility in the southern Great Plains, U.S., we discovered bat feces near the base of a wind turbine tower, which led us to hypothesize that bats were actively roosting and/or foraging at turbines. Thus over 2 consecutive years, we conducted systematic searches for bat feces on turbines at this site. We collected 72 bat fecal samples from turbines and successfully extracted DNA from 56 samples. All 6 bat species known to be in the area were confirmed and the majority (59%) were identified as Lasiurus borealis; a species that also comprised the majority of the fatalities (60%) recorded at the site. The presence of bat feces provides further evidence that bats were conducting activities in close proximity to wind turbines. Moreover, feces found in areas such as turbine door slats indicated that bats were using turbines as night or foraging roosts, and further provided evidence that bats were active near the turbines. Future research should therefore aim to identify those features of wind turbines that bats perceive or misperceive as a resource, which in turn may lead to new minimization strategies that effectively reduce bat fatalities at wind farms.

Lasiurus borealis (Eastern Red Bat), long considered a common species, is now experiencing population declines. Most studies of their roosting habits have reported that the species uses mature canopy trees. We radio-tracked 2 adult male Eastern Red Bats to their roost trees in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia in June of 2012. Both bats roosted in a different tree each day, but spent 3–5 days roosting in groups of nearby trees before making larger movements out of the study area. Characteristics of roost trees differed markedly between bats. One bat roosted in Castanea dentata (American Chestnut) and Quercus rubra (Red Oak) saplings in early-successional habitat; the other roosted in mature Quercus spp. (oaks) in closed-canopy forest. Most roost trees and nearby trees were shorter and smaller diameter than those reported in previous studies. Our results suggest Eastern Red Bats have relatively broad roosting habits that include use of both early- and late-successional habitat.

Bats could be a useful study system for studying the evolution of social communication, as they exhibit a high diversity of social group size and complexity. However, the study of bat social calls has been limited, as they are nocturnal, volant animals that produce predominately ultrasonic vocalizations. Passive acoustic monitoring studies occasionally capture bat in-flight social calls. The information from surrounding echolocation calls can provide information on species identity, activity level, and foraging behavior. We used passive acoustic monitoring in Greensboro, North Carolina, to identify seven types of in-flight social calls from Eptesicus fuscus, Lasiurus borealis, Lasiurus cinereus, Nycticeius humeralis, Perimyotis subflavus, and Tadarida brasiliensis. Eptesicus fuscus, N. humeralis, and T. brasiliensis differed in total social call production, and the proportional use of call types. Shared called types exhibited species-specific signatures, indicating the potential for bats to discern signaler identity. Social call production was positively correlated with bat activity. Social calls were often temporally clustered into independent social calling bouts. The complex and upsweep bouts of E. fuscus were associated with foraging, and the likelihood of complex bouts was negatively correlated with heterospecific activity. The production of N. humeralis downsweep, downsweep-upsweep, and upsweep bouts varied by season and site, but not according to bat activity, foraging, or time of night. Species differed in which call types were most commonly emitted, and these calls are associated with different contexts, suggesting that bats exhibit species-specific differences in in-flight social behavior.

Native predators provide undervalued pest suppression services to agriculture. Studies of pest consumption by insectivorous bats tend to focus upon single species in large, centralized colonies, while bats dispersed in small groups within the agricultural matrix often go unnoticed. Pecan trees, Carya illinoinensis, and the destructive pecan nut casebearer (PNC) moth, Acrobasis nuxvorella, comprise a tightly linked host&ndash, parasite system in a widespread agroecosystem native to North America. Here we use a quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assay of fecal DNA to document predation on PNC moths by an assemblage of sympatric bat species across episodic peaks in PNC abundance. Although five species of bats consume PNC moths, greater predation by a solitary tree-roosting bat (eastern red bat, Lasiurus borealis) than other species is suggested by a higher frequency of PNC occurrence and quantity of PNC gene copies in fecal samples. Consumption of PNC by bats during all documented peaks in moth activity suggests that predation pressure occurs throughout the PNC season. Our results highlight the need to consider multi-species assemblages and different foraging strategies when assessing pest suppression services, particularly in agroforestry or tree crops. Assessing the diet of only common or easily captured species limits our ability to accurately document pest consumption by bats.

BackgroundThe luxury effect describes the positive relationship between affluence and organism diversity or activity in urban ecosystems. Driven by human activities, the luxury effect can potentially be found at a broader scale across different landscapes. Previously, the luxury effect relationship has been established within a city for two bat species, the red bat (Lasiurus borealis) and the evening bat (Nycticeius humeralis). We examined landscape-scale patterns of bat activity distribution—using empirical data for seven bat species for the luxury effect. We also identified bat-land cover associations for each species. Across North Carolina, USA, we used the mobile transect survey protocol of the North American Monitoring Program to record bat activity at 43 sites from 2015 to 2018. We collected land cover and income data at our transect locations to construct generalized linear mixed models to identify bat-land cover and bat-income relationships.ResultsWe found that across landscapes, activity of the red bat and the evening bat was positively correlated to income independent of land cover, consistent with previous single-city results. We found a negative relationship between hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) activity and income. All seven species had specific land cover associations. Additionally, we found a positive interaction term between income and evergreen forest for the red bat and a positive interaction term between income and woody wetland for hoary bat.ConclusionsOur results demonstrated that the luxury effect is an ecological pattern that can be found at a broad spatial scale across different landscapes. We highlight the need for multi-scale ecology studies to identify the mechanism(s) underlying the luxury effect and that the luxury effect could cause inequity in how people receive the ecosystem services provided by bats.

Bat populations in eastern North America have experienced precipitous declines following the spread of white-nose syndrome (WNS) and other population stressors. It is imperative to understand changes in bat populations as WNS spreads to provide appropriate guidance for species management. We developed generalized linear mixed-models of population trend and habitat associations for five indicator bat species on U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Mobile Acoustic Bat Monitoring program routes across 86 sites in the southeastern United States from 2012 to 2017. We estimated substantial declining annual trends in relative abundance of tricolored bat (Perimyotis subflavus; −15.1% [−20.6 to −9.1% 95% CI]) and little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus; −13.9% [−22.9 to −3.8% 95% CI]). Relative abundance of bat species increased throughout the summer, and associated positively with the amount of woody cover along survey routes in all but P. subflavus. Fewer evening bats (Nycticeius humeralis) and eastern red bats (Lasiurus borealis) were detected along more developed routes. Using these models, we conducted a prospective power analysis to examine sampling effort necessary to detect moderate to catastrophic population changes in bat populations. We estimated that it would require 10–20 years of surveys on 50–100 routes to detect 5% annual declines in all species at 80% power and α = 0.1. Detecting a 2.73% annual decline may require >200 surveys over >20 years; whereas a 1.14% annual decline was nearly impossible to detect via our program. We demonstrate and caution that underpowered monitoring programs may misrepresent the magnitude and/or sign of population trajectories. We recommend project-specific power analysis continue to be emphasized as an important study design component for effective long-term monitoring programs.

Day-roost selection by Lasiurine tree bats during winter and their response to dormant season fires is unknown in the southeastern United States where dormant season burning is widely applied. Although fires historically were predominantly growing season, they now occur in the dormant season in this part of the Coastal Plain to support a myriad of stewardship activities, including habitat management for game species. To examine the response of bats to landscape condition and the application of prescribed fire, in the winter of 2019, we mist-netted and affixed radio-transmitters to 16 Lasiurine bats, primarily Seminole bats (Lasiurus seminolus) at Camp Blanding Joint Training Center in northern Florida. We then located day-roost sites to describe roost attributes. For five Seminole bats, one eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis), and one hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus), we applied prescribed burns in the roost area to observe bat response in real-time. Generally, Seminole bats selected day-roosts in mesic forest stands with high mean fire return intervals. At the roost tree scale, Seminole day-roosts tended to be larger, taller and in higher canopy dominance classes than surrounding trees. Seminole bats roosted in longleaf (Pinus palustris), slash (Pinus elliotii) and loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) more than expected based on availability, whereas sweetbay (Magnolia virginiana), water oak (Quercus nigra) and turkey oak (Quercus laevis), were roosted in less than expected based on availability. Of the seven roosts subjected to prescribed burns, only one male Seminole bat and one male eastern red bat evacuated during or immediately following burning. In both cases, these bats had day-roosted at heights lower than the majority of other day-roosts observed during our study. Our results suggest Seminole bats choose winter day-roosts that both maximize solar exposure and minimize risks associated with fire. Nonetheless, because selected day-roosts largely were fire-dependent or tolerant tree species, application of fire does need to periodically occur to promote recruitment and retention of suitable roost sites. U.S. Department of Defense Legacy Resources Program [HQ0034-18-2-0012] WMF and MJC received funding for this research which was U.S. Department of Defense Legacy Resources Program award HQ0034-18-2-0012 https://www.denix.osd.mil/legacy/index.html.The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Wind turbines have been hypothesized to affect bat populations; however, no comprehensive analysis of bat mortality from the operation of wind turbines in Canada has been conducted. We used data from carcass searches for 64 wind farms, incorporating correction factors for scavenger removal, searcher efficiency, and carcasses that fell beyond the area searched to estimate bat collision mortality associated with wind turbines in Canada. On average, 15.5 ± 3.8 (95% CI) bats were killed per turbine per year at these sites (range = 0−103 bats/turbine/yr at individual wind farms). Based on 4,019 installed turbines (the no. installed in Canada by Dec 2013), an estimated 47,400 bats (95% CI = 32,100−62,700) are killed by wind turbines each year in Canada. Installed wind capacity is growing rapidly in Canada, and is predicted to increase approximately 3.5-fold over the next 15 years, which could lead to direct mortality of approximately 166,000 bats/year. Long-distance migratory bat species (e.g., hoary bat [Lasiurus cinereus], silver-haired bat [Lasionycteris noctivagans], eastern red bat [Lasiurus borealis]) accounted for 73% of all mortalities. These species are subject to additional mortality risks when they migrate into the United States. The little brown myotis (Myotis lucifugus), which was listed as Endangered in 2014 under the Species At Risk Act (SARA), accounted for 13% of all mortalities from wind turbines, with most of the mortality (87%) occurring in Ontario. Population-level impacts may become an issue for some bat species as numbers of turbines increase. © 2016 The Wildlife Society.

An unanticipated impact of wind-energy development has been large-scale mortality of insectivorous bats. In eastern North America, where mortality rates are among the highest in the world, the hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) and the eastern red bat (L. borealis) comprise the majority of turbine-associated bat mortality. Both species are migratory tree bats with widespread distributions; however, little is known regarding the geographic origins of bats killed at wind-energy facilities or the diversity and population structure of affected species. We addressed these unknowns by measuring stable hydrogen isotope ratios (δ2 H) and conducting population genetic analyses of bats killed at wind-energy facilities in the central Appalachian Mountains (USA) to determine the summering origins, effective size, structure, and temporal stability of populations. Our results indicate that ~1% of hoary bat mortalities and ~57% of red bat mortalities derive from non-local sources, with no relationship between the proportion of non-local bats and sex, location of mortality, or month of mortality. Additionally, our data indicate that hoary bats in our sample consist of an unstructured population with a small effective size (Ne ) and either a stable or declining history. Red bats also showed no evidence of population genetic structure, but in contrast to hoary bats, the diversity contained in our red bat samples is consistent with a much larger Ne that reflects a demographic expansion after a bottleneck. These results suggest that the impacts of mortality associated with intensive wind-energy development may affect bat species dissimilarly, with red bats potentially better able to absorb sustained mortality than hoary bats because of their larger Ne . Our results provide important baseline data and also illustrate the utility of stable isotopes and population genetics for monitoring bat populations affected by wind-energy development.

White-nose syndrome (WNS) and wind-turbine facilities on the Delmarva Peninsula are emerging threats to the peninsula's current bat fauna. However, until our study, there had been no assessment of bat populations or their habitats in that region. The purpose of our research was to fill this gap by using 28 road-based transects and 24 passive-monitoring sites to acoustically monitor bats across the peninsula. In total, we recorded 4432 bat-call sequences and documented the presence of at least 6 species: Lasiurus borealis (Eastern Red Bat), Eptesicus fuscus (Big Brown Bat), Nycticeius humeralis (Evening Bat), L. cinereus (Hoary Bat), Perimyotis subflavus (Tri-colored Bat), 1 or more species in the genus Myotis, and potentially Lasionycteris noctivagans (Silver-haired Bat). Given the similarity in call structure between Silver-haired and Big Brown Bats, we cannot say with certainty the former were present. Eastern Red Bats, Evening Bats, and Hoary Bats were relatively widespread and abundant; Tri-c...

Little is known about the effects that oak forest regeneration treatments consisting of a combination of shelterwood harvesting and prescribed fire have on bats, despite increasing use of these treatments. We quantified changes in bat activity levels in relation to oak forest regeneration treatments consisting of harvesting at 50% and 70% retention levels and prescribed fire in two upland Appalachian hardwood forests in Ohio. We monitored bat activity immediately post-harvest, three growing seasons post-harvest, and after application of prescribed fire to harvested stands before the fourth growing season. Total bat activity levels were higher in thinned and thinned and burned treatments than in unthinned controls in all years, but did not differ between harvest treatment levels immediately post-harvest, three growing seasons post-harvest, or between harvest treatment levels within years. Total bat activity post-prescribed fire changed only in the 50% retention harvest treatment blocks, wherein activity decreased. Activity levels of big brown (Eptesicus fuscus) bats were greater in harvested treatment blocks than controls in all years. Activity levels of eastern red (Lasiurus borealis), and Myotis spp. and tri-colored (Perimyotis subflavus) collectively did not differ among treatment blocks post-fire, but were greater in harvested treatment blocks than controls three growing seasons post-harvest. Community composition was strongly related to vegetation volume, with eastern red bats and Myotis and tri-colored bats displaying positive relationships with clutter in low height strata, and big brown bats displaying a negative relationship with clutter in all height strata. The positive relationship between eastern red and Myotis and tri-colored bats and clutter in low height strata may explain why activity levels of these species decreased post-prescribed fire. Our study suggests that the harvesting component of oak forest regeneration treatments may benefit bats for several years, and that while bat activity levels may decline post-prescribed fire, overall activity levels are nonetheless greater than in unthinned areas.

Across the Southeastern U.S., including the Cumberland Plateau of Tennessee, prescribed fire and overstory thinning are being used to restore areas of closed-canopy hardwood forest to open woodland and savanna. We used acoustic recording of bat echolocation call sequences to examine bat activity (relative use of an area for foraging) in hardwood forest stands subject to 4 prescribed fire and residual basal area treatments (spring prescribed fire with woodland [SpW] and savanna [SpS] residual basal areas, and fall prescribed fire with woodland [FaW] and savanna [FaS]) basal areas, as well as untreated controls, during summer of 2013 and 2014. When possible, we classified recorded echolocation call sequences to species using automated identification software (Sonobat™ 3.1.4, SonoBat™ Inc., Arcata, California). To minimize errors in species classification of recorded bat passes, we combined similar species in groups based on call characteristics prior to conducting analyses. Total bat activity (P ⩽ 0.001), as well as LABO/NYHU (eastern red bat [Lasiurus borealis] and evening bat [Nycticeius humeralis]; P = 0.001), EPFU/LANO (big brown bat [Eptesicus fuscus] and silver-haired bat [Lasionycteris noctivagans]; P ⩽ 0.001), PESU (tricolored bat [Perimyotis subflavus]; P = 0.001), and LACI (hoary bat [Lasiurus cinereus]; P = 0.005) activity was generally higher in SpS and FaS stands, where overstory basal area was lower, than in control, SpW, and FaW stands, where overstory basal area was higher (P ⩽ 0.001). Our results suggest these treatments reduce clutter (physical obstructions to flight and foraging including foliage, branches, and stems), leading to improved foraging conditions for bats, particularly larger bodied species with lower call frequencies that are adapted to fly and forage in open conditions. We found no evidence nocturnal flying insect prey abundance or biomass influenced activity of bats in treatment stands, indicating clutter is more important than prey availability in determining habitat use by bats in this system. Our study provides support for continued use of prescribed fire and overstory thinning to restore hardwood forest to woodland and savanna and as a strategy to maintain and enhance habitat for forest bats in the Southeastern U.S.

To meet growing global food demand, producers are actively searching for ways tocrop yield. One way to boost yield is to reduce arthropod damage. However, insecticides are becoming less effective and can have detrimental effects on human health and the environment. Learning how to harness natural pest control is one way to reduce arthropod damage to crops and avoid adverse effects of insecticide use. Therefore, we examined the diets of two bat species that are likely to provide pest control services across the United States corn belt: the eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis) and the big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus). We also show that primer choice can impact the diversity of taxa detected and resecent adavances in primer design can improve diet detection studies. Using new ANML primers to isolate prey DNA in fecal material, we found a more diverse diet than previously reported for both bat species. Big brown bats consumed an average of 16.2 species from 8.5 genera. Red bats consumed an average of 28.6 species from 15.8 genera. We found pest genera in 92 % of big brown bat samples and 94 % of red bat samples. For both bat species, approximately two pest genera were detected in each sample. Corn rootworms (Diabrotica), Cloverworms (Hypena), plant bugs (Lygus), wireworms (Melanotus), seed corn beetles (Stenolophus), and armyworms (Spodoptera) were the most frequently consumed agricultural pests. We confirm earlier studies that document beetles (Coleoptera) and moths (Lepidoptera) as the most common prey items of big brown and red bats, respectively. However, we also document a diverse diet for both bat species that includes many true bugs (Hemiptera). Because pest control services of big brown and red bats are not completely overlapped, we conclude that a diverse bat community is essential to maximize pest control services by bats.

The eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis) is widely considered to be in decline, inspiring interest in identifying important habitats for conservation in the eastern United States. Unfortunately, knowledge of important day-roosting habitats is lacking for much of the species' range. We examined patterns of day-roost selection by male and female eastern red bats at two study sites in southeastern Ohio, U. S. A, to help fill this information gap. We radio-tagged 28 male and 25 female bats during the summers of 2016-2019 and located 53 male and 74 female roosts. Day-roost selection differed between sexes and study areas. In a mostly even-aged forest with significant historical disturbance, we found males and females roosting in trees located at higher elevations, with no clear selection based on tree or stand characteristics. Specifically, males selected trees with larger diameters located at lower, cooler elevations than females, which selected smaller diameter trees found at higher, warmer elevations. However, in a forest with less historical disturbance and more structural diversity, we found sexes differed in how they selected from available habitats. These data show that heterogeneity in environmental conditions can lead to different patterns in selection, even between sites located within a small geographic area. They also show that eastern red bats sexually segregate on the local landscape in the presence of diverse forest conditions but may not do so in the absence of such diversity. We recommend managing forests to maintain structural diversity across an elevational gradient to provide male and female eastern red bats with suitable day-roosting habitat in southeast Ohio.

Few North American studies have quantified differences in bat community composition between summer and winter. In southerly regions, especially the coastal plain of the Gulf of Mexico, winters are mild and experience only short periods of freezing weather annually. In regions such as this, there may be a substantive community of bats that are active in the winter. We examined seasonality of the bat community in the Kisatchie National Forest of Louisiana. We mist-netted bats for 130 nights during winter and 51 nights during summer and caught 200 and 190 bats, respectively, from 10 different species. Corynorhinus rafinesquii (Rafinesque's Big-eared Bat), Lasiurus borealis (Eastern Red Bat), and Lasionycteris noctivagans (Silver-haired Bat) were more frequently captured in winter, all other species were captured more frequently in summer. Significant differences existed between summer and winter in species richness and abundance of bats, but not for Shannon's diversity index. Across the entire year and in winter, more bats were caught on nights with higher temperature than on nights with lower temperatures. Although there was much temporal variation in species composition, we found a substantial bat community that is active in the winter in the Kisatchie National Forest of Louisiana.

Global wildlife populations are in decline, in part, due to habitat loss resulting from urbanization. Urban green roofs may mitigate such habitat loss by providing supplemental habitat for wildlife, including bats, which are more active over urban green roofs than nearby traditional roofs. To better understand bat activity over urban green roofs, we surveyed bats and arthropods on a 27,316-m2 green roof planted with Sedum spp. in New York City from June to August 2017. We found that Lasiurus borealis (Eastern Red Bat), a species with a diet consisting mainly of moths, accounted for 88% of identified bat calls. We collected over 15,000 arthropods of 16 taxa and found that moth abundance, while a relatively small proportion of green roof arthropods, correlated positively with bat activity. Our findings suggest that urban green roofs provide useable habitat for moths and other arthropods and, consequently, bats may forage on green roofs when prey are available.

In November 2017, oocysts of the coccidian Eimeria macyi Wheat, 1975 were isolated from the faeces of a single eastern red bat Lasiurus borealis Muller in Lowndes County, Mississippi, USA. Sporulated oocysts, morphologically consistent with previous accounts of E. macyi in other chiropterans, were spherical to sub-spherical in shape with a highly mamillated outer wall that appears bi-layered. Oocysts allowed to sporulate in 2.5% potassium dichromate at ambient temperature (c.23°C) for 7 days were 17–25 × 15–20 (20.7 × 17.9) µm. Micropyle and oocyst residuum were absent with one to two polar granules scattered among sporocysts. The four ovoid sporocysts were 7–12 × 6–8 (9.9 × 7.1) µm. Stieda bodies were prominent and sub-Stieda bodies were present. Two sporozoites were reflexed within each sporocyst. Nuclear 18S rRNA gene, plastid 23S rRNA gene and mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (cox1) gene were sequenced from sporulated oocysts and compared to other molecular data of Eimeria spp. from rodent and chiropteran hosts. No sequence data in the NCBI database matched E. macyi. Phylogenetic analyses of the sequence data of the 18S rRNA and 23S rRNA genes placed E. macyi within a clade containing Eimeria spp. from rodents and basal to a clade populated by sequences derived from Eimeria spp. of rodents and bats. This account represents a new host record of E. macyi in an eastern red bat and a new geographic locality. Additionally, the cox1 sequence data of Eimeria macyi represents the first mitochondrial sequence of an Eimeria sp. in bats.

Land‐use change has resulted in rangeland loss and degradation globally. These changes include conversion of native grasslands for row‐crop agriculture as well as degradation of remaining rangeland due to fragmentation and changing disturbance regimes. Understanding how these and other factors influence wildlife use of rangelands is important for conservation and management of wildlife populations. We investigated bat habitat associations in a working rangeland in southeastern North Dakota. We used Petterson d500x acoustic detectors to systematically sample bat activity across the study area on a 1‐km point grid. We identified calls using Sonobat autoclassification software. We detected five species using this working rangeland, which included Lasionycteris noctivagans (2,722 detections), Lasiurus cinereus (2,055 detections), Eptesicus fuscus (749 detections), Lasiurus borealis (62 detections), and Myotis lucifugus (1 detection). We developed generalized linear mixed‐effects models for the four most frequently detected species based on their ecology. The activity of three bat species increased with higher tree cover. While the scale of selection varied between the four species, all three investigated scales were explanatory for at least one bat species. The broad importance of trees to bats in rangelands may put their conservation needs at odds with those of obligate grassland species. Focusing rangeland bat conservation on areas that were treed prior to European settlement, such as riparian forests, can provide important areas for bat conservation while minimizing negative impacts on grassland species.

The development and expansion of wind energy is considered a key global threat to bat populations. Bat carcasses are being found underneath wind turbines across North and South America, Eurasia, Africa, and the Austro-Pacific. However, relatively little is known about the comparative impacts of techniques designed to modify turbine operations in ways that reduce bat fatalities associated with wind energy facilities. This study tests a novel approach for reducing bat fatalities and curtailment time at a wind energy facility in the United States, then compares these results to operational mitigation techniques used at other study sites in North America and Europe. The study was conducted in Wisconsin during 2015 using a new system of tools for analyzing bat activity and wind speed data to make near real-time curtailment decisions when bats are detected in the area at control turbines (N = 10) vs. treatment turbines (N = 10). The results show that this smart curtailment approach (referred to as Turbine Integrated Mortality Reduction, TIMR) significantly reduced fatality estimates for treatment turbines relative to control turbines for pooled species data, and for each of five species observed at the study site: pooled data (-84.5%); eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis, -82.5%); hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus, -81.4%); silver-haired bat (Lasionycteris noctivagans, -90.9%); big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus, -74.2%); and little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus, -91.4%). The approach reduced power generation and estimated annual revenue at the wind energy facility by ≤ 3.2% for treatment turbines relative to control turbines, and we estimate that the approach would have reduced curtailment time by 48% relative to turbines operated under a standard curtailment rule used in North America. This approach significantly reduced fatalities associated with all species evaluated, each of which has broad distributions in North America and different ecological affinities, several of which represent species most affected by wind development in North America. While we recognize that this approach needs to be validated in other areas experiencing rapid wind energy development, we anticipate that this approach has the potential to significantly reduce bat fatalities in other ecoregions and with other bat species assemblages in North America and beyond.

Stable hydrogen isotope techniques are increasingly used to investigate the migratory ecology of bats. This approach relies on the presence of predictable continental scale patterns in the stable hydrogen isotope composition of bat fur (δ2Hfur). While these patterns have been demonstrated repeatedly, there is local variation in δ2Hfur and the systematic patterns of variation are not well described for many bat species. We investigated local scale δ2Hfur variation in two species of North American bats, little brown myotis (Myotis lucifugus) and eastern red bats (Lasiurus borealis) obtained at two sites in southwestern Ontario. We found systematic differences in the δ2Hfur of multiple fur samples taken from the same bat, between mothers and their dependent young, and over the course of the summer season. We found substantial differences in the δ2Hfur profiles of two species from the same location as well as between populations of the same species at different but proximate locations. Our results inform sampling protocols for future stable hydrogen isotope investigations of bat ecology.

Migratory tree bats comprise the majority of casualties at wind energy facilities across North America and some species, like Lasiurus borealis, are suspected to be in decline. We took advantage of the large numbers of L. borealis and L. cinereus salvaged during fall migration at 1 wind farm in Texas and 3 wind farms in Minnesota to evaluate the ability of current genetic methods to estimate population size and detect genetic bottlenecks in these species. Using DNA extracted from wing membrane tissue samples, we genotyped 439 L. borealis and 246 L. cinereus at 6 microsatellite loci and a 550 bp segment of the mitochondrial COI gene. Both microsatellite loci and mitochondrial haplotypes showed high levels of genetic diversity in each species. Historical estimates of Ne were large for both species. Estimates of NEf from the COI gene were almost 2 times higher for L. borealis than L. cinereus, whereas estimates utilizing microsatellite heterozygosity were higher for L. cinereus. We found a strong signal of r...

Pseudogymnoascus destructans, the causal agent of white-nose syndrome (WNS), is responsible for widespread mortality of hibernating bats across eastern North America. To document P. destructans exposure and infections on bats active during winter in the southeastern US, we collected epidermal swabs from bats captured during winters 2012–13 and 2013–14 in mist nets set outside of hibernacula in Tennessee. Epidermal swab samples were collected from eight Rafinesque's big-eared bats (Corynorhinus rafinesquii), six eastern red bats (Lasiurus borealis), and three silver-hair bats (Lasionycteris noctivagans). Using real-time PCR methods, we identified DNA sequences of P. destructans from skin swabs of two Rafinesque's big-eared bats, two eastern red bats, and one silver-haired bat. This is the first detection of the WNS fungus on Rafinesque's big-eared bats and eastern red bats and the second record of the presence of the fungus on silver-haired bats.

The ability to fully evaluate potential relationships between forest management and bats is limited without information from relevant spatial scales. Further, knowledge of bat ecology in intensively managed forests is fairly limited even though these forests are a substantial portion of the forested landscape in the southeastern U.S. Therefore, we used occupancy models to examine influence of small-scale vegetation characteristics and large-scale spatial features on foraging patterns of bats within 6 managed-pine (Pinus spp.) forest landscapes in the southeastern U.S. Coastal Plain. We conducted repeated acoustic surveys to determine species presence/non-detection and evaluated a priori models relating detection probability and occupancy to site- and landscape-level metrics for 6 species/genera. Detection of big brown (Eptesicus fuscus) and eastern red (Lasiurus borealis)/Seminole (L. seminolus) bats (eastern red and Seminole bats combined) decreased with increasing basal area, and detection of big brown and Brazilian free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiliensis) increased over the summer sampling period. Relationships between occupancy and habitat metrics were species-specific but consistent with previous studies. Occupancy for most bat species was lower at sampling sites with higher vegetation clutter and higher basal area. In contrast to most previous studies, occupancy of all bat species investigated was unrelated to or negatively influenced by distance to water. Although site- and landscape-level features influenced occupancy, our results indicate that site-specific features (vegetation clutter and basal area) influenced most species. Therefore, stand-level management activities that decrease vegetation structure, such as thinning intermediate-aged stands and/or controlling midstory vegetation (e.g., fire or herbicide applications), likely will maintain or increase suitability of managed pine forest stands and landscapes for many bat species in the southeastern Coastal Plain. The forest mosaics that we sampled, consisting primarily of managed pine stands intermingled with non-production habitat types, supported a large proportion of the bat community associated with forests of the Coastal Plain which suggests the compatibility of timber production and bat conservation objectives.

Although the ultimate causes of high bat fatalities at wind farms are not well understood, several lines of evidence suggest that bats are attracted to wind turbines. One hypothesis is that bats would be attracted to turbines as a foraging resource if the insects that bats prey upon are commonly present on and around the turbine towers. To investigate the role that foraging activity may play in bat fatalities, we conducted a series of surveys at a wind farm in the southern Great Plains of the US from 2011–2016. From acoustic monitoring we recorded foraging activity, including feeding buzzes indicative of prey capture, in the immediate vicinity of turbine towers from all six bat species known to be present at this site. From insect surveys we found Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, and Orthoptera in consistently high proportions over several years suggesting that food resources for bats were consistently available at wind turbines. We used DNA barcoding techniques to assess bat diet composition of (1) stomach contents from 47 eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis) and 24 hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) carcasses collected in fatality searches, and (2) fecal pellets from 23 eastern red bats that were found on turbine towers, transformers, and tower doors. We found that the majority of the eastern red bat and hoary bat stomachs, the two bat species most commonly found in fatality searches at this site, were full or partially full, indicating that the bats were likely killed while foraging. Although Lepidoptera and Orthoptera dominated the diets of these two bat species, both consumed a range of prey items with individual bats having from one to six insect species in their stomachs at the time of death. The prey items identified from eastern red bat fecal pellets showed similar results. A comparison of the turbine insect community to the diet analysis results revealed that the most abundant insects at wind turbines, including terrestrial insects such as crickets and several important crop pests, were also commonly eaten by eastern red and hoary bats. Collectively, these findings suggest that bats are actively foraging around wind turbines and that measures to minimize bat fatalities should be broadly implemented at wind facilities.