TY - JOUR
T1 - Ecological gradients explain variation of phyllostomid bat (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae) diversity in Honduras
AU - Turcios-Casco, Manfredo A.
AU - Gatti, Roberto Cazzolla
AU - Dri, Gabriela Franzoi
AU - Cáceres, Niltón
AU - Stevens, Richard
AU - de Sales Dambros, Cristian
N1 - Funding Information:
To Alejandro Soler, Diego Ordoñez, Eduardo Ordoñez, and Hefer Ávila because all the fieldworks were done with them, their useful comments on the manuscript, and all their effort in the conservation of bats in Honduras. To the wildlife department of the Instituto Nacional de Conservación y Desarrollo Forestal, Áreas Protegidas y Vida Silvestre (ICF), for the research permit. Finally, to two anonymous reviewers and Danilo Russo for their comments that improved this manuscript.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Säugetierkunde.
PY - 2021/12
Y1 - 2021/12
N2 - Geographical barriers, distance, and environmental gradients may determine variation in species composition of bat assemblages in tropical regions. For example, bats assume a wide variety of foraging strategies, dietary traits, different flight abilities, and New World leaf-nosed bats (Phyllostomidae) are among the most functionally diverse family of bats. Nonetheless, this variation remains uncharacterized in Honduras. Our study investigated the relationship of environmental and climatic variables that influence leaf-nosed bat assemblages in terms of alpha and beta taxonomic and functional diversity. From February 2015 to May 2019, we sampled 56 sites and captured 1086 phyllostomid bats. We found that taxonomic alpha diversity decreased with elevation, and that functional alpha diversity decreased with elevation and humidity. Changes in taxonomic β-diversity were associated with elevation and changes in functional β-diversity were associated with humidity, elevation, and precipitation. Our findings suggest that elevation is the key environmental variable influencing New World leaf-nosed bat assemblages in Honduras, and even though species composition varies among different habitats, the functional composition of assemblages remains similar.
AB - Geographical barriers, distance, and environmental gradients may determine variation in species composition of bat assemblages in tropical regions. For example, bats assume a wide variety of foraging strategies, dietary traits, different flight abilities, and New World leaf-nosed bats (Phyllostomidae) are among the most functionally diverse family of bats. Nonetheless, this variation remains uncharacterized in Honduras. Our study investigated the relationship of environmental and climatic variables that influence leaf-nosed bat assemblages in terms of alpha and beta taxonomic and functional diversity. From February 2015 to May 2019, we sampled 56 sites and captured 1086 phyllostomid bats. We found that taxonomic alpha diversity decreased with elevation, and that functional alpha diversity decreased with elevation and humidity. Changes in taxonomic β-diversity were associated with elevation and changes in functional β-diversity were associated with humidity, elevation, and precipitation. Our findings suggest that elevation is the key environmental variable influencing New World leaf-nosed bat assemblages in Honduras, and even though species composition varies among different habitats, the functional composition of assemblages remains similar.
KW - Alpha diversity
KW - Beta diversity
KW - Central America
KW - Gradients
KW - New World leaf-nosed bats
KW - Turnover
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85110491281&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s42991-021-00152-z
DO - 10.1007/s42991-021-00152-z
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85110491281
SN - 1616-5047
VL - 101
SP - 949
EP - 961
JO - Mammalian Biology
JF - Mammalian Biology
IS - 6
ER -