Temporal niche overlap of a riparian forest bat assemblage in subtropical Mexico

Abstract

Use of time as mediator of ecological interactions is important but has been poorly studied and has received less attention than other niche axes. We characterized and compared patterns of activity, and temporal activity overlap of a bat assemblage at a riparian forest from La Peregrina Canyon, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Bats were captured during twenty one-nights, distributed over a year, using mistnets. Nets were opened before sunset and closed 13 h later, being checked every 30 min. A total of 22 species were recorded, with Sturnira lilium, Desmodus rotundus, S. ludovici, Artibeus lituratus and Pteronotus davyi, as the most abundant species. The activity of D. rotundus was different from other abundant species, except with A. lituratus with whom had a high activity overlap. Within the assemblage, the highest temporal overlap was between S. lilium and S. ludovici. Among common guilds, frugivores showed a different pattern from that of insectivores and sanguinivores. Although riparian zones mainly provide roost, food and water, they also provide protection along streams, therefore are used as a flight corridor. This is the first study that analyzes temporal use by neotropical bats of a riparian habitat using null model analysis with different time resolutions. key words: activity patterns, chiroptera, chronoecology, community structure, La Peregrina Canyon, Mexico, null models. La repartición del nicho temporal puede ser un mecanismo viable para la coexistencia de las espe- cies, pero ha sido pobremente estudiado y recibido menor atención que otros ejes (i.e. alimento y espacio). En este estudio caracterizamos y comparamos patrones de actividad y sobrelapamiento de actividad temporal en un ensamblaje de murciélagos del bosque ripario en el cañón de La Peregrina, Tamaulipas, México. Se capturaron murciélagos durante veintiuna noches utilizando redes de niebla. Las redes se abrieron antes de la puesta del sol, se cerraron 13 hr después, y se revisaron cada 30 min. Se registraron un total de 22 especies, con Sturnira lilium, Desmodus rotundus, S. ludovici, Artibeus lituratus y Pteronotus davyi, como las especies más abundantes. La actividad de D. rotundus fue diferente a la del resto de especies abundantes, con excepción de A. lituratus con quién presento el mayor sobrelapamiento de actividad. Dentro del ensamblaje, el más alto sobrelapamiento temporal fue entre S. lilium y S. ludovici. A través de gremios tróficos, los frugívoros mostraron un patrón diferente al de insectívoros y sanguinívoros. Aunque las zonas riparias proporcionan principalmente refugio, alimento y agua, también brindan protección a lo largo de arroyos, por lo tanto son utilizadas como un corredor de desplazamiento. Este es el primer estudio que analiza el uso temporal por murciélagos neotropicales de un hábitat ripario utilizado análisis de modelo nulo con diferentes resoluciones de tiempo. palabras clave: patrones de actividad, Chiroptera, cronoecología, estructura de comunidades, Cañón La Peregrina, México, modelos nulos.

Unusual temporal niche overlap in a phytophagous bat ensemble of western Cuba

“…Several Neotropical frugivorous bat assemblages (Phyllostomidae) have been analysed with these methods, with most assemblages evincing more overlap in their activities than at random (Arriaga-Flores et al . 2012, Castro-Arellano et al . 2009, Presley et al .…”

Do riparian forest strips in modified forest landscapes aid in conserving bat diversity?

“…High species richness in RS sites was also accompanied by considerable variation in species’ capture rates with few very abundant species, several common species and many captured only a few times. This pattern is typical for phyllostomid bat species in Neotropical areas (Arriaga‐Flores et al, ; Estrada, Coates‐Estrada, Meritt, Montiel, & Curiel, ). The number of species captured rarely may reflect their use of riparian strips as movement corridors among larger forest patches, rather than permanent occupancy in riparian strips.…”

“…Previous studies found riparian vegetation is crucial to ensure bat mobility across human-modified landscapes (Galindo-Gonzalez & Sosa, 2003). Other studies also observed higher richness of phyllostomid species in riparian forest when compared to open areas or continuous mature forest (Arriaga-Flores et al, 2012;de la Pena-Cuellar et al, 2015;Lourenco et al, 2014). This may also indicate that riparian forest strips add value when compared to forest corridors without streams.…”

“…One mechanism to minimize the impact of clearing for agriculture and other production activities on biodiversity is to maintain riparian forest strips (insects: Barlow et al, , Brito et al, , Gray, Lewis, Chung, & Fayle, , Gray, Slade, Mann, & Lewis, ; macroinvertebrates: McClain, ; fish: Giam et al, ; birds: Machtans, Villard, & Hannon, , Mitchell et al, , Whitaker & Montevecchi, ; bats: Lloyd, Law, & Goldingay, , Mullin, ; small mammals: Al‐Khudhairy Gutierrez, ; Chapman & Ribic, ; Cockle & Richardson, ; Darveau, Labbe, Beauchesne, Belanger, & Huot, ; large and medium‐sized mammals: Paolino et al, , Phoebus, Segelbacher, & Stenhouse, , Zimbres, Peres, & Machado, ). These strips may become prominent features in agricultural landscapes and may assume disproportionate roles in protecting biodiversity outside protected areas (Arriaga‐Flores, Castro‐Arellano, Moreno‐Valdez, & Correa‐Sandoval, ; Mendenhall, Karp, Meyer, Hadly, & Daily, ; Naiman, Decamps, & Pollock, ). Within agricultural landscapes, riparian forest strips may help conserve water resources, improve water quality, harbor animals that serve as bio‐control agents, provide connections between forest fragments, and act as physical barriers to destructive fires, radiation fluxes, winds, and pests (Muscutt, Harris, Bailey, & Davies, ; Saunders, Hobbs, & Margules, ; Zanuncio, Mezzomo, Guedes, & Oliveira, ).…”

“…Al-Khudhairy Gutierrez, 2015;Chapman & Ribic, 2002;Cockle & Richardson, 2003;Darveau, Labbe, Beauchesne, Belanger, & Huot, 2001; large and medium-sized mammals: Paolino et al, 2018, Phoebus, Segelbacher, & Stenhouse, 2017, Zimbres, Peres, & Machado, 2017. These strips may become prominent features in agricultural landscapes and may assume disproportionate roles in protecting biodiversity outside protected areas (Arriaga-Flores, Castro-Arellano, Moreno-Valdez, & Correa-Sandoval, 2012;Mendenhall, Karp, Meyer, Hadly, & Daily, 2014;Naiman, Decamps, & Pollock, 1993). Within agricultural landscapes, riparian forest strips may help conserve water resources, improve water quality, harbor animals that serve as bio-control agents, provide connections between forest fragments, and act as physical barriers to destructive fires, radiation fluxes, winds, and pests (Muscutt, Harris, Bailey, & Davies, 1993;Saunders, Hobbs, & Margules, 1991;Zanuncio, Mezzomo, Guedes, & Oliveira, 1998).…”