Need for multiscale planning for conservation of urban bats

Abstract

For over a century there have been continual efforts to incorporate nature into urban planning. These efforts (i.e., urban reconciliation) aim to manage and create habitats that support biodiversity within cities. Given that species select habitat at different spatial scales, understanding the scale at which urban species respond to their environment is critical to the success of urban reconciliation efforts. We assessed species-habitat relationships for common bat species at 50-m, 500-m, and 1 km spatial scales in the Chicago (U.S.A.) metropolitan area and predicted bat activity across the greater Chicago region. Habitat characteristics across all measured scales were important predictors of silver-haired bat (Lasionycteris noctivagans) and eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis) activity, and big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus) activity was significantly lower at urban sites relative to rural sites. Open vegetation had a negative effect on silver-haired bat activity at the 50-m scale but a positive effect at the 500-m scale, indicating potential shifts in the relative importance of some habitat characteristics at different scales. These results demonstrate that localized effects may be constrained by broader spatial patterns. Our findings highlight the importance of considering scale in urban reconciliation efforts and our landscape predictions provide information that can help prioritize urban conservation work.

At what spatial scale(s) do mammals respond to urbanization?

“…Mismatch between the scale of analysis (defined by the researcher) and the scale of effect (defined by the true relationship) represents a version of the Modifiable Areal Unit Problem (Gehlke and Biehl 1934), whereby inference becomes an artifact of spatial sampling scheme rather than an ecological process (Jelinski and Wu 1996). Accurately identifying the scale of effect can aid in theorybuilding regarding species-landscape relationships (Weins 1989, Levin 1992) and species' conservation efforts by identifying the scales at which landscapes should be managed (Miguet et al 2017, Gallo et al 2018. Accurately identifying the scale of effect can aid in theorybuilding regarding species-landscape relationships (Weins 1989, Levin 1992) and species' conservation efforts by identifying the scales at which landscapes should be managed (Miguet et al 2017, Gallo et al 2018.…”

“…In modeling species-landscape relationships, this mismatch can lead to underestimation of variation, reduced predictive accuracy, biased magnitudes and incorrect directionality of effects, and imprecise estimation of the relative importance of landscape variables (Holland et al 2004, De Knegt et al 2010, Smith et al 2011, Miguet et al 2016, Mertes and Jetz 2018. Accurately identifying the scale of effect can aid in theorybuilding regarding species-landscape relationships (Weins 1989, Levin 1992) and species' conservation efforts by identifying the scales at which landscapes should be managed (Miguet et al 2017, Gallo et al 2018.…”

“…Despite these observations, comprehensive evaluations of the scales at which these effects occur are virtually absent (Pickett et al 2016, Moll et al 2019a). The lack of clarity regarding the scales at which urbanization effects take place impedes a more generalized understanding of urban ecology and limits management and conservation efforts because the scale at which to concentrate such efforts is often unknown (Borgström et al 2006, Gallo et al 2018, Moll et al 2019a.…”

Home range expansion in response to temperature by evening bats (Nycticeius humeralis) in an urban environment

“…For example, by making residential swimming pools readily available for bats, urban environments may become more suitable and accessible for bats throughout their activity period. Thus, improving these urban areas may contribute to the conservation of bats and help mitigate the impacts of urbanization [4,34].…”

“…The continued expansion of urban areas is anticipated to be a major threat to bat populations [1][2][3]. These areas in particular represent highly modified environments with concrete structures and impervious surfaces that appear to offer little or no resources for bats [4].…”