Search

Until now, late summer or autumn invasions into inhabited building have been regarded as phenomenon typical for the common pipistrelle, pipistrellus pipistrellus, exclusively. During the investigation of this phenomenon in the city of Košice (eastern Slovakia), we discovered that it was not always entirely specific for this species. During the period 2016–2018, we recorded 3 events out of 35 invasions, where small groups of common pipistrelles that invaded into inhabited buildings were also accompanied by individuals of two con-generic bat species, pipistrellus pygmaeus and pipistrellus kuhlii. Cryptic species p. pipistrellus and p. pygmaeus were determined by genetic test. In addition, in 2019, we recorded the first winter occurrence of another pipistrelle species, pipistrellus nathusii, in this urban environment. We conclude that areas of frequent invasive behaviour of p. pipistrellus may be sometimes associated with concomitant occurrence of other related species that share common thermal or foraging niche and such behaviour could be evidence of their urbanisation tendencies.

The vocal activity of males, crucial for successfully mating in many amphibian species, could differ according to different biotic or abiotic factors. In populations living in urbanized areas, calling activity patterns may deviate significantly from their typical patterns in natural environments. Using passive acoustic monitoring during one breeding season, we assessed the calling activity of three rural and three urban populations of Bufotes viridis to consider the effect of the contrasting habitats on breeding phenology. We assessed the relationship between calling activity, i.e., the number of positive minutes per site, and three environmental cues (precipitation, air temperature, and seasonality) revealed air temperature as the main factor affecting species vocalization, which had a negative effect on calling activity. We noted a deviation from the decreasing call activity pattern during the late breeding season in two urban sites in June and July when calling was notably increased, probably reflecting human intervention in the breeding habitats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Initially, the Rhinolophus hipposideros group was defined by two morphological traits, the structure of the nose-leaf and the shape of basioccipital bone of the skull. Originally, it consisted of two species, R. hipposideros and R. midas, whereas currently it is considered to contain a single species, R. hipposideros, under whose rank both original species have been joined. The interpretation of geographic variability within the group has traditionally been based on variation in body and skull size, nose-leaf shape, and several selected skull and tooth characters. This approach resulted in delimitations of up to seven subspecies, mostly in the Mediterranean area, a conception introduced more than a hundred years ago and accepted by many authors till today. We investigated the phylogenetic relationships among populations of R. hipposideros with the help of molecular genetic, morphological, and acoustic examinations. Our analysis uncovered the existence of an unexpected diversity within the R. hipposideros group, challenging its current phylogenetic and taxonomic arrangements. The molecular genetic analysis of almost 100 samples and morphological examinations of about 300 specimens showed two main, geographically exclusive, phylogenetic lineages within the group, well delimited by molecular characteristics and possessing two distinct morphotypes and two distinct echotypes. These two lineages are isolated deep enough to be considered separate species. One of them, R. hipposideros s.str., is widespread over the south-western Eurasia and north-western and north-eastern Africa, and the other, R. midas, is distributed in a small range around the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman. The extensive range of R. hipposideros s.str. is inhabited at least by two subspecies, separated mainly by the genetic characters, whereas the morphological and echolocation traits do not distinguish the populations sufficiently. The western R. h. hipposideros occurs in the Maghreb and Europe west of the Dnieper River, Bosporus, and the Strait of Karpathos, and the eastern R. h. minimus lives east of this boundary, including the populations of Crimea, Caucasus, the Middle East, and north-eastern Africa (Sudan to Djibouti). The two subspecies also differ in karyotype, with 2n = 58 in R. h. minimus and 2n = 54–56 in R. h. hipposideros. The taxonomic position of the easternmost populations of R. hipposideros s.str. (West Turkestan, Afghanistan, Kashmir) remains unresolved and has to be investigated more elaborately and using a more extensive sample set. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Mediterranean is considered one of the richest biodiversity regions in Europe, and bats contribute to this species richness. Within the last two decades, certain bat species traditionally considered as representatives of the Mediterranean have spread northwards and colonized areas outside this region. In our study, we focused on ecological requirements of one of these bat species, the Savi's pipistrelle (Hypsugo savii). We used radio-telemetry and diet analysis to describe habitat use, home-range size and diet composition of reproductive females of Savi's pipistrelle in the traditional core of its distribution range in the Mediterranean region. Our results indicate that Savi's pipistrelle is able to fly long distances and utilize a wide range of habitats within its home-range, with affinities for particular habitats depending on its reproductive status. In particular, pregnant females favoured rocky pastures and forest areas, followed by meadows and riparian habitat, whereas the affinity for riparian habitat increased in lactating females, followed closely by meadows, forest and rocky pastures. The larger affinity for riparian habitats during lactation might indicate its importance for successful rearing of young, which could be influenced in the future by increasing droughts and water shortage in the Mediterranean region. Nevertheless, based on our radio-telemetry and diet analysis the species shows a high degree of flexibility, as an opportunistic forager that flies across large areas on a nightly basis, which may be a good predisposition for colonizing new areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]