Nocturnal habitat selection of bats using occupancy models

Abstract

Threats to North American bat species necessitate the quantification of bat habitat. To characterize bat habitat, we recorded bat echolocation calls from state forests in Indiana, USA. We identified calls using automated classification software and constructed detection histories for 3 species of conservation concern: Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis), little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus), and northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis). We analyzed these data using single-and multi-species occupancy approaches to estimate occurrence and detection probabilities at the genus level (Myotis) and for each species separately. We constructed models using a suite of habitat covariates (e.g., forest cover, edge, streams, hibernacula, public roads) and determined the effect of these features on occupancy for each species (or group). We validated all models using training and independent data. Occupancy of all species was affected by the proportion of forest in surrounding areas. For most models, bat occupancy was greatest in areas with a lower proportion of forest within 1 km. Occupancy was also often greatest in recently harvested or intact, mature second-growth stands as opposed to stands 10-30 years following harvest. The spatial configuration of water and roads also affected species occupancy. Our methods allowed us to assess the factors that affect occupancy for the genus and individual species, thus allowing for the identification of features useful in classifying important habitat at both taxonomic levels. The results of this study can aid land managers in identifying habitat that may be used by foraging bats and in planning future timber harvests in managed forests. Ó 2017 The Wildlife Society.KEY WORDS acoustic, habitat, Indiana bat, little brown bat, Myotis lucifugus, Myotis septentrionalis, Myotis sodalis, northern long-eared bat.

Responses of insectivorous bats to tree felling in forested wetlands

“…Our finding of higher bat activity in forested wetlands in the post-volant period is consistent with seasonal variation in bat activity observed in forest regenerating from timber harvests (Wright et al 2021). Our results further demonstrate the importance of considering time of year when developing bat monitoring protocols (Burns and Broders 2015, Pauli et al 2017, Ketzler et al 2018).…”

Foraging habitat drives the distribution of an endangered bat in an urbanizing boreal landscape

“…Little brown bats were affected by other types of human disturbance aside from urbanization (agriculture, mining, quarries, and other forest clearings) at the landscape scale; however, the direction of this effect was opposite to our prediction. We expected that artificial forest clearings would increase habitat heterogeneity and foraging opportunities across the forest‐dominated landscape (Yates and Muzika 2006, Pauli et al 2017). We also thought bats would benefit from edge habitat created by forest clearings, which they may use for foraging and commuting between habitat patches (Grindal and Brigham 1999, Hein et al 2009).…”

Multi-state occupancy models of foraging habitat use by the Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus)

“…Quantifying conventional population parameters such as abundance or density for these species is not currently feasible and can hamper species status and conservation assessments [ 1 ]. For such species, occupancy analysis can be an effective method for elucidating the relationship of habitat attributes and species occurrence while also accounting for imperfect detection [ 7 ], and the approach has been used for bat studies at local [ 8 , 9 ], regional [ 10 ] and broader geographic extents [ 11 , 12 ]. However, analyses based solely on animal presence can be inadequate because they omit information on abundance, activity levels, or behavior that may further inform assessment of habitat use and suitability.…”