Bat use of commercial coniferous plantations at multiple spatial scales: Management and conservation implications

Kirkpatrick, Lucinda; Maher, Sarah J.; Lopez, Zeltia; Lintott, Paul R.; Bailey, Sallie; Dent, Daisy H.; Park, Kirsty

doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2016.11.018

Cited by 32 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…However, our sample was dominated by Nyctalus noctula (71.5%), and this differed from the other studies whereby the dominant species represented 22-56% of the recordings (Bender et al 2015;Hein et al 2009;Loeb and Waldrop 2008;Morris et al 2010;Tibbels and Kurta 2003;Vindigni et al 2009). Similar results were obtained on intensively managed Sitka spruce plantations in the UK, where nine bat species were found, although in that case activity was dominated by two species: Pipistrellus pipistrellus and P. pygmaeus (Kirkpatrick et al 2017). Although we did not find that species richness (including sonotypes) differed among stand ages, a previous study in mixed forests of Switzerland revealed that species richness was higher in gaps (i.e.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 81%

The foraging activity of bats in managed pine forests of different ages

et al. 2019

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Temperate zone bats are associated with forests and affected by forest management practices. However, practices vary among regions and countries, and the relationship between bats and managed forest stands is not well understood. We compared the activity of bats in three forest management areas across four stand ages of managed Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) in western Poland. Stand ages included clear-cut stands, young (2-5 year) stands, middle-aged (41-60 year) stands, and mature (> 80 years) stands. We sampled bat activity by walking transects with a broadband ultrasound Pettersson D-1000X detector. Across our study area, highest bat activity was in clear-cut and young stands and lowest in mature stands. Bat species adapted to foraging in open habitats had high activity in clear and young stands, while those adapted to closed habitats had high activity in middle-aged and mature stands. Our results suggest that the presence of mature pine forests is important for closed-habitat foragers, including rare and threatened bat species, and active management to increase mature forest areas is important. At the same time, a mosaic of different growth stages of stands can support high activity of open-and edgehabitat foragers.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 81%

The foraging activity of bats in managed pine forests of different ages

et al. 2019

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“…Previously, we found evidence of P. pipistrellus and P. pygmaeus making widespread use of three large, predominantly Sitka Spruce (Picea sitchensis) plantations in Scotland and Northern England, with all other species in this geographic range also detected, albeit in low numbers (Kirkpatrick et al, 2017). There was also evidence that Pipistrellus spp.…”

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confidence: 82%

“…However, often these studies are carried out in areas of extremely low conifer cover (e.g. conifer cover of less than 3%, Davidson-Watts and Jones, 2005;Davidson-Watts et al, 2006) and there is growing evidence that certain bat species are able to make use of intensively managed non-native plantations in landscapes dominated by plantations (Charbonnier et al, 2016;Cistrone et al, 2015;Kirkpatrick et al, 2017;Mortimer, 2006;Russo et al, 2010). While the impacts of logging forests have been investigated for a number of different bat species worldwide (e.g New Zealand: Parsons, 2010a, 2010b; USA: Grindal and Brigham, 1998;Australia: Law and Law, 2011), much of the previous work has concentrated primarily on old growth or native forests (Dodd et al, 2012;Grindal and Brigham, 1998;Loeb et al, 2006;Loeb and O'Keefe, 2011;Menzel et al, 2002;Patriquin and Barclay, 2003).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Research that does exist has focused on the impacts management may have on forest specialist bats which rely on tree roosts for much of their life cycle Borkin and Parsons, 2014). For bat species which are adept at using anthropogenically-disturbed habitats and rely on building roosts rather than tree roosts, commercial coniferous plantations may be a landscape which they can exploit (Kirkpatrick et al, 2017).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Clear felling causes an immediate and substantial change to stand structural complexity, which may benefit foraging success in edge and open adapted bats (Adams, 2012;Elmore et al, 2005;Kirkpatrick et al, 2017). In stands with substantial vegetative clutter, bat activity will be reduced due to constraints on both echolocation and manoeuvrability (Dodd et al, 2012;Morris et al, 2010;Patriquin and Barclay, 2003), and bat activity is likely to increase once clear felling has occurred.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Responses of bats to clear fell harvesting in Sitka Spruce plantations, and implications for wind turbine installation

Kirkpatrick

Oldfield

Park

2017

Forest Ecology and Management

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Commercial coniferous plantations are often assumed to be poor habitats for bats. As a result, the impact of forest management practices on bats, such as clear felling, has received little attention, particularly in Europe. However, there is growing evidence from multiple regions that bats do make use of plantation landscapes, and as interest in siting onshore wind turbines in upland conifer plantations grows, there is an urgent need to examine whether felling prior to turbine installation is likely to put foraging bats at risk of collision. In the first study of its kind, we use a “before – after – control – impact” study to explore the short-term impacts of clear fell harvest on bat activity in commercial plantations. Thirty-one mature stands of Sitka Spruce were surveyed using acoustic detectors in three large, upland Sitka Spruce plantations in Britain. Eleven stands were felled between 2013 and 2015, and 26 of the original 31 stands were resurveyed in 2015. The change in total bat activity and species- or genus-specific bat activity was modelled before and after felling occurred at both felled and control stands using generalised linear models. There was no change in overall bat activity at felled sites compared to control sites, but activity ofNyctalusspecies was 23 times higher following felling. TotalPipistrellus spp.activity doubled at felled sites post-harvesting, although this was mainly driven by increased activity at a few felled sites. WhenP. pygmaeusandP. pipistrelluswere considered separately, activity increased slightly but non-significantly. The size of the felled area influenced activity (for bats overall andPipistrellus spp.), with 90% higher activity in smaller felled stands (less than 5ha−1) compared to larger felled stands (greater than 30ha−1). ForP. pipistrellus, activity in felled areas decreased with the duration since harvesting; the greatest activity occurred in stands felled within two months compared to those harvested more than 16months previously. Higher activity for some groups following felling may occur due to the creation of more edge habitat, which is preferred by bothPipistrellusspecies we recorded. An increase in activity following the small-scale felling (‘key-holing’) required for the installation of turbines could put foraging bats at risk from collisions with turbines. Further investigation of the influence of both size of clear fell patch, timing of felling and changes in invertebrate abundance due to felling are required to establish the potential risk of key-holing and turbine installation to foraging bats

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What makes a good bat box? How box occupancy depends on box characteristics and landscape‐level variables

Pschonny

Leidinger

Leitl³

et al. 2022

Ecol Sol and Evidence

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Bat populations are in steep decline and presently, 16% of all species are classified as ‘threatened’. One main driver identified for this decline is the loss of natural roosting opportunities, caused by the removal of natural habitats. Installation of bat boxes is one solution to compensate for the lack of natural roosting opportunities. Current recommendations for box design emphasize low maintenance costs and are rarely based on empirical evidence. We investigated occupancy of 13,634 bat boxes in northern Bavaria, Germany. In our study, boxes differed in type, age and mounting height, as well as in maximum community age, that is the length of time a group of boxes had been installed in a particular place, the size of box groups and the distance to the next box in the surrounding area, that is box isolation. Our results showed that box occupancy depended on box type and bat species. As a case study, we analysed the two most common species found within the investigated boxes, Pipistrellus pipistrellus and Myotis nattereri, in more detail. Both species showed preference to a voluminous box that had a narrow entrance (‘Gable box’ 14 mm). For P. pipistrellus, only box type affected occupancy, whereas for M. nattereri, the relationship between box type and box age was important. Older boxes and boxes in areas with higher maximum community age of boxes showed higher box occupancy by bats. Box occupancy decreased with the distance between adjacent box groups (‘box isolation’). High mounting height showed a tendency for increased box occupancy, but the effect was only weakly significant. Because of the species‐specific responses in our study, we suggest installing a combination of different box types, including at least one box type with a narrow entrance (14 mm). Boxes should be placed as box groups of three to four boxes, and there should be short distances between adjacent box groups. We also recommend installing new box groups close to areas of high maximum community age of boxes.

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Bat use of commercial coniferous plantations at multiple spatial scales: Management and conservation implications

Cited by 32 publications

References 53 publications

The foraging activity of bats in managed pine forests of different ages

The foraging activity of bats in managed pine forests of different ages

Responses of bats to clear fell harvesting in Sitka Spruce plantations, and implications for wind turbine installation

What makes a good bat box? How box occupancy depends on box characteristics and landscape‐level variables

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