Bat communities and deforestation in French Guiana

Abstract

The impact of deforestation on the composition and dynamics of bat communities received close attention during a 15-year survey of the bats of French Guiana. Overall, deforestation lowers species richness: 48 of the 75 bat species from primary forest, mainly mature-forest phyllostomids, were not found in large areas that had been deforested for a long time. The 27 "rare" species, each represented by fewer than 6 of 8031 captures, had been apparently virtually eliminated from deforested areas. These altered habitats had been repopulated by a few opportunistic frugivorous phyllostomid species and by species belonging to the widespread insectivorous families Vespertilionidae and Molossidae. Habitats altered by humans harbor over four times as many individual bats as primary rain forest. This rise in both frugivorous and insectivorous bat populations in areas of degraded vegetation appears linked to the abundance of bat-dispersed pioneer' fruiting plant species available to phyllostomids and the multiplication of roosting sites for vespertilionids and molossids in human habitats. The species richness of local bat communities is positively influenced by the presence of forest corridors or the immediate proximity of a forest block.

Morcegos da região sul do Brasil: análise comparativa da riqueza de espécies, novos registros e atualizações nomenclaturais (Mammalia, Chiroptera)

“…1). Isso pode representar alguma falta de amostragem direcionada para esse grupo, já que as espécies dessa família são pouco capturáveis por redes de neblina (em especial as armadas próximas ao solo) (BROSSET et al, 1996;SIMMONS & VOSS, 1998). Assim, tal resultado pode indicar ser interessante uma maior amostragem de morcegos dessa família em Santa Catarina, visando um maior esforço para esse grupo em particular.…”

Bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) in a cerrado landscape in São Carlos, southeastern Brazil

“…In the state of São Paulo, southeastern Brazil, only 0.81% of the Cerrado remains, and many of its remnants are located within or near urban areas (Kronka et al 2005). Although it is known that several bat species are able to maintain viable populations in urban environments or near them (Esbérard 2003;Barros et al 2006), bat population declines due to anthropogenic influences have been pointed out by several studies (Rydell et al 2010;Sakanowicz and Wower 2013;Brosset et al 1996).…”

A Biodiversity Assessment of Bats (Chiroptera) in a Tropical Lowland Rainforest of Central Amazonia, Including Methodological and Conservation Considerations

“…Bats (Chiroptera) account for around 40% of this diversity (see Koopman, 1993;Marinho-Filho & Sazima, 1998). Overall, the region of the Brazilian Amazon, along with the Guyana region (Brosset et al, 1996;Simmons & Voss, 1998;Cosson et al, 1999;Lim & Engstrom, 2001), holds one of the most diverse bat faunas in the Neotropics (e.g., Mok et al, 1982;dos Reis & Peracchi, 1987;Hutterer et al, 1995;Voss & Emmons, 1996;Bernard & Fenton, 2002).…”