Bat assemblages in conservation areas of a metropolitan region in Southeastern Brazil, including an important karst habitat

Abstract

Species richness and abundance of bats were studied in four nature reserves, including a karst area which has many potential rocky shelters for bats, such as caves and rock crevices. The reserves were located in the greater Belo Horizonte metropolitan area, one of the most populated regions of Brazil, within the Atlantic Forest, and Cerrado (Brazilian savanna) ecological domains. Bats were sampled using mist-nets and, in the karst area, also by active searches in shelters. A total of 1,599 bats were captured representing 30 species belonging to four families. There was little similarity among the four chiropteran faunas. The greatest species richness was found in the karst area with 22 species recorded whereas richness estimates in the other areas indicated the need for further studies. Two hundred and sixty-five individuals of 14 species were captured from 56 shelters. Most of the shelters were frequently used for diurnal roosts, and all the bats found belonged to the Phyllostomidae, with the exception of Myotis nigricans (Vespertilionidae), Nyctinomops laticaudatus (Molossidae) and Peropteryx macrotis (Emballonuridae). The sanguinivorous Desmodus rotundus was the most common species in the shelters. The results of this study demonstrate the importance of maintaining multiple protected areas to ensure a representative fauna of bats in a region characterized by a vegetation transition zone and with intense economic activity and high environmental impact. This study also demonstrates the importance of rock shelters for maintaining local bat richness and the importance of active searches for bats in their diurnal roosts for a more thorough sampling of the bat fauna at a given locality.Keywords: Carste de Lagoa Santa, day roost sites, rock shelters, Serra do Rola Moça. Assembleias de morcegos em áreas de conservação de uma região metropolitana no sudeste do Brasil, incluindo um importante hábitat cárstico ResumoNeste estudo, a riqueza e a abundância de espécies de morcegos foram estudadas em quatro reservas naturais, incluindo uma área cárstica com muitas cavernas e fendas em rochas, que constituem abrigos rochosos potenciais para os morcegos. As reservas encontram-se dentro da região metropolitana de Belo Horizonte-MG, uma das mais povoadas do Brasil, e dentro dos domínios de Floresta Atlântica e do Cerrado. Os morcegos foram amostrados com redes de neblina (mist-nets) e, na área cárstica, também foi realizada busca ativa por morcegos em seus abrigos. Foram capturados 1.599 morcegos de 30 espécies, pertencentes a quatro famílias. Houve pouca similaridade entre as faunas de quirópteros analisadas. A maior riqueza foi encontrada na área cárstica, com 22 espécies registradas com redes de neblina e em seus abrigos; entretanto, estimativas de riqueza indicaram a necessidade de mais estudos nas outras áreas. Do total amostrado, 265 indivíduos de 14 espécies foram capturados em 56 abrigos. A maioria dos abrigos era ocupada no período diurno e de uso frequente; os morcegos presentes eram filostomídeos, exceto Myot...

Tracking dietary habits of cave arthropods associated with deposits of hematophagous bat guano: A study from a neotropical savanna

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Bat species vulnerability in Cerrado: integrating climatic suitability with sensitivity to land-use changes

“…Among the analysed species, M. nigricans, A. cinereus and P. lineatus were the most exposed to deforestation in suitable areas of the Cerrado. Such results may not seem to be relevant, since such species are widely distributed across a range of vegetation types (Zortéa & Alho 2008; Oprea et al 2009; Talamoni et al 2013). However, we noted that the Cerrado biome is close to marginal areas for the distributions of P. lineatus and A. cinereus (Gardner 2007).…”

Filamentous fungi occurrence on Molossus molossus (Pallas, 1766) (Chiroptera: Molossidae) present in an Atlantic Forest remnant in Southern Brazil

“…These bats are medium size insectivores characterized by present rounded ears and close to the midline above the head, hair dark brown to reddish brown and a ventral tuft of hair on the upper lip (Weber et al, 2013;Reis et al, 2017). It is considered a synanthropic species, occurring often in urban areas where the human constructions are used as a shelter (Souza, 2011;Reis et al, 2012;Talamoni et al, 2013). In Neotropical bats, especially Brazilian species, it is unknown about the microbiota associate with these animals, which only a single work (Shapiro et al, 2015) has been done so far.…”