Identifying priority areas for bat conservation in the Western Ghats mountain range, peninsular India

Abstract

Understanding patterns of species distribution and diversity plays a vital role in biodiversity conservation. Such documentation is frequently lacking for bats, which are relatively little studied and often threatened. The Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot in peninsular India is a bat hotspot with 63 species. We conducted a comprehensive bat survey across the southern Western Ghats and used maximum entropy modeling (MaxEnt) to model the potential distribution of 37 bat species for which sufficient data were available. We generated binary maps of each species using species-specific thresholds to estimate suitable habitat areas and overlaid binary maps of species to produce bat hotspots (we use the term “bat hotspot” for regions that were suitable for more than 25 bat species). We also estimated species richness across protected area networks in the southern Western Ghats to assess the level of protection. The highest levels of species richness were found mainly along the southmost Periyar–Agastyamalai landscape. The study also identified a 1,683 km2 area of potential bat hotspot and 726 km2 (43%) of the total bat hotspots are currently within the protected area network. However, more than 50% of suitable habitats for each of the 37 species remain unprotected. Therefore, conservation decisions are needed to take into account both bat hotspots and species with restricted distributions.

Future climatically suitable areas for bats in South Asia

“…Understanding species responses to rapid climate change is vital in conservation planning, especially in regions with high biodiversity and rates of endemism (Quintero & Wiens, 2013;Raman et al, 2023;Warren et al, 2008). This study is an initial assess- Simões & Peterson, 2018), the lack of accurate data on their interactions when it comes to bats in this region could lead to overfitting, erroneous predictions, and misinterpretations across highly diverse species and functional groups (Araujo & New, 2007;Fordham et al, 2012;Newbold, 2018;Peterson et al, 2011;Simões & Peterson, 2018).…”

“…Understanding species responses to rapid climate change is vital in conservation planning, especially in regions with high biodiversity and rates of endemism (Quintero & Wiens, 2013 ; Raman et al., 2023 ; Warren et al., 2008 ). This study is an initial assessment of potential effects of near‐future (2041–2060) climate change on bat species in South Asia, finding that while climatically suitable areas may be reduced, many currently suitable areas are likely to remain, and shifts may be within the dispersal potential of many species.…”

“…We also limited our study to species for which we could gather five or more occurrence localities across South Asia, with a minimum distance between occurrences of 5 km. Presence‐only occurrence data for these species were collected from published (including but not limited to Bates & Harrison, 1997 ; Raman et al., 2023 ; Srinivasulu et al., 2021a , 2021b ; Srinivasulu & Srinivasulu, 2012 ), unpublished sources (records collected during field surveys conducted in India between 2002 and 2022 and records communicated by collaborators and citizen scientists in the region confirmed by photographic or other evidence) and GBIF records [accessed July 2022]. Records of specimens housed in museums, including the Natural History Museum (London, UK), Harrison Institute (Sevenoaks, United Kingdom), Field Museum of Natural History (Chicago, USA), Zoological Survey of India (Kolkata, India) and Natural History Museum, Osmania University (Hyderabad, India), were also included.…”

“…Unfortunately, in most regions in South Asia, bats are often perceived negatively (Frembgen, 2006 ) and are not considered to be of conservation value – only six species are specifically protected by the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. Bats can be important as indicator species (Jones et al., 2009 ), ecological service providers and keystone species (Altringham & McOwat, 2011 ; Hughes et al., 2012 ; Kalka et al., 2008 ; Raman et al., 2023 ; Williams‐Guillén et al., 2008 ). Globally bats have been identified as particularly susceptible to climate change (Festa et al., 2022 ; Sherwin et al., 2013 ) due to their high risk of dehydration caused by their high surface‐to‐volume ratios (as a result of their relatively smaller bodies and larger wing and tail membranes; Korine et al., 2016 ; Salinas‐Ramos et al., 2023 ) and their slower reproductive strategies (Frick et al., 2020 ).…”

Genetic Characterization and Insular Habitat Enveloping of Endangered Leaf-Nosed Bat, Hipposideros nicobarulae (Mammalia: Chiroptera) in India: Phylogenetic Inference and Conservation Implication

“…To protect any threatened species, it is important to know how different taxa respond to land use change and how habitat and climate change affect their persistence [ 28 , 29 ]. Several studies have already been conducted to achieve habitat distribution modelling of bats globally [ 30 , 31 , 32 ] and in India [ 33 ]. Due to the lack of sufficient knowledge on habitat fitness, the present study also attempts to perform species distribution modelling of H. nicobarulae to identify a suitable home range in the Nicobar Islands, which can be used for monitoring and strategic conservation of this species in the near future.…”