Can pinewoods provide habitat for a deciduous forest specialist? a two-scale approach to the habitat selection of Bechstein's bat

TY - JOUR

T1 - Can pinewoods provide habitat for a deciduous forest specialist?

T2 - a two-scale approach to the habitat selection of Bechstein's bat

AU - Arrizabalaga-Escudero, Aitor

AU - Napal, Maria

AU - Aihartza, Joxerra

AU - Garin, Inazio

AU - Alberdi, Antton

AU - Salsamendi, Egoitz

PY - 2014

Y1 - 2014

N2 - Populations of Myotis bechsteinii in Sierra de Cazorla, Segura y Las Villas Natural Park (southwestern Spain) survive in a large, old-growth coniferous woodland, which is in contrast with known ecological preferences of the species. We tracked ten lactating females and studied patterns of habitat selection by Bechstein's bat (Myotis bechsteinii) at two spatial scales: macrohabitat and microhabitat, regarding forest essence (coniferous vs. deciduous). The tracked individuals always foraged within forested areas and did not use areas devoid of trees. At the macrohabitat level, no positive selection of deciduous stands was apparent, suggesting selection studies of coarse resolution may not be able to capture subtle selection patterns. At the microhabitat level Myotis bechsteinii selected deciduous patches within the coniferous matrix, therefore, our results corroborate the perception of this species as dependent of services provided by deciduous woodlands. Larger foraging home ranges and commuting distances as compared with other Mediterranean localities suggest that our studied population inhabits a marginal or suboptimal environment in terms of habitat quality. We argue that this population of Bechstein's bat has survived as a relict one probably as a consequence of fragmentation and transformation of deciduous forest ecosystems in the Mediterranean range.

AB - Populations of Myotis bechsteinii in Sierra de Cazorla, Segura y Las Villas Natural Park (southwestern Spain) survive in a large, old-growth coniferous woodland, which is in contrast with known ecological preferences of the species. We tracked ten lactating females and studied patterns of habitat selection by Bechstein's bat (Myotis bechsteinii) at two spatial scales: macrohabitat and microhabitat, regarding forest essence (coniferous vs. deciduous). The tracked individuals always foraged within forested areas and did not use areas devoid of trees. At the macrohabitat level, no positive selection of deciduous stands was apparent, suggesting selection studies of coarse resolution may not be able to capture subtle selection patterns. At the microhabitat level Myotis bechsteinii selected deciduous patches within the coniferous matrix, therefore, our results corroborate the perception of this species as dependent of services provided by deciduous woodlands. Larger foraging home ranges and commuting distances as compared with other Mediterranean localities suggest that our studied population inhabits a marginal or suboptimal environment in terms of habitat quality. We argue that this population of Bechstein's bat has survived as a relict one probably as a consequence of fragmentation and transformation of deciduous forest ecosystems in the Mediterranean range.

KW - Deciduous forest

KW - Macrohabitat

KW - Mediterranean

KW - Microhabitat

KW - Myotis bechsteinii

U2 - 10.1016/j.mambio.2013.09.005

DO - 10.1016/j.mambio.2013.09.005

M3 - Journal article

AN - SCOPUS:84896395228

SN - 1616-5047

VL - 79

SP - 117

EP - 122

JO - Mammalian Biology

JF - Mammalian Biology

IS - 2

ER -