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Natural caves play a crucial role in providing habitat for numerous bat species in temperate regions. While the potential of man-made structures to support biodiversity gains attention, there is a lack of information regarding the suitability of artificial tunnels as viable alternatives to natural ones. In this study, we assessed the use of artificial tunnels of hydroelectric power plants by bats in the NE Iberian Peninsula (Spain) during the breeding season for most species. Between 2013 and 2014, we monitored bat activity in 37 individualized tunnel entrances using harp traps and mist nets. To understand factors influencing their habitat use, we built competitive models to assess the effect of surrounding landscape, environment and tunnel factors on the richness and abundance of both cave-dwelling and generalist species, as well as on its suitability as breeding habitat for bats. We captured and identified a total of 738 bats representing 60% of species occurring in the South-West countries of Europe, including three regionally and two globally threatened species. Of the total, 67% of surveyed tunnels were used by bats. Our findings highlight that tunnel characteristics such as tunnel height, absence of grilles, and cover of surface runoff influenced all bat groups. Relative humidity primarily favours richness and abundance of females with pups. When properly designed and managed, man-made tunnels of hydroelectric power plants can play an important role in bat conservation by offering essential roosts and breeding sites; however, other potential ecological impacts of these infrastructures on local ecosystems must be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The presence of Pipistrellus kuhlii and Eptesicus serotinus is documented for the first time in the archipelago of Cabrera. The inventory of bats for these islands consists of six species: Pipistrellus kuhlii, Hypsugo savii, Eptesicus serotinus, Plecotus austriacus, Miniopterus schreibersii and Tadarida teniotis. Given the lack of reliable evidence on the presence of species of the genus Rhinolophus and Myotis in Cabrera, mentioned by other authors, is excluded from the catalog. Geographical distribution of the different species of bats within this area is provided in the attached maps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In June 2020, a cat from Arezzo (Italy) that died from a neurological disease was diagnosed with West Caucasian Bat Lyssavirus (WCBV). The virus retained high identity across the whole-genome with the reference isolate found in 2002 from a Russian bent-winged bat. We applied control measures recommended by national regulations, investigated a possible interface between cats and bats using visual inspections, bioacoustics analyses and camera trapping and performed active and passive surveillance in bats to trace the source of infection. People that were exposed to the cat received full post-exposure prophylaxis while animals underwent six months of quarantine. One year later, they are all healthy. In a tunnel located near the cat’s house, we identified a group of bent-winged bats that showed virus-neutralizing antibodies to WCBV across four sampling occasions, but no virus in salivary swabs. Carcasses from other bat species were all negative. This description of WCBV in a non-flying mammal confirms that this virus can cause clinical rabies in the absence of preventive and therapeutic measures, and highlights the lack of international guidelines against divergent lyssaviruses. We detected bent-winged bats as the most probable source of infection, testifying the encroachment between these bats and pets/human in urban areas and confirming free-ranging cats as potential hazard for public health and conservation.

This research was based on some characteristics of the erythrocyte and leukocyte cells of 9 Miniopterus schreibersii (♀♀) samples collected from Balıkesir Province in Turkey between July 2015 and September 2016. Bats were caught from an artificial cave using special nets. Blood was taken in heparinized hematocrit tubes from the forearm or tail membrane in the laboratory and the blood smears were prepared. The erythrocyte and leukocyte counts, hemoglobin concentration, and hematocrit values in the blood were determined. In M. schreibersii, the number of erythrocytes in 1 mm3 of blood was between 7.5 and 10 million, and the mean value was 8.8 million. The diameter values of the erythrocyte, monocyte, lymphocyte, eosinophil, neutrophil, and basophil cells were measured as 5.65, 9.66, 8.4, 8.66, 10, and 8.5 µm, respectively. Blood values of M. schreibersii were recorded for the first time in this study in Anatolia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coastal lagoons provide key habitat for a wide range of biota but are often degraded by intense urbanization pressures. Insectivorous bats use these highly productive ecosystems and are likely to be impacted by their decline in quality. We compared bat activity and richness and invertebrate biomass and richness across a gradient of lagoon quality (9 lagoons) in the Greater Sydney region, Australia to determine the extent to which bats and their prey were impacted by lagoon degradation. Bats were more diverse and 19 times more active at higher quality lagoons. The trawling bat, Myotis macropus , was absent from all low quality lagoons, but these lagoons were used by other species such as Miniopterus schreibersii oceanensis . Invertebrate richness and biomass did not differ significantly across lagoon quality. We examined potential mechanisms of insectivorous bat decline at degraded lagoons by measuring toxic metal concentrations in bat fur, invertebrates and sediment. Lead and zinc were detected at environmentally significant levels in the sediments of lower quality lagoons. Furthermore, lead concentrations were 6 times the lowest observable adverse effects level for small mammals in the hair of one individual M. macropus . The present study demonstrates that coastal lagoons support a rich bat community, but ongoing development and pollution of these habitats is likely to negatively impact on insectivorous bat species, especially trawling species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, Ag-nucleolar organizing region (NOR) banding patterns of Myotis myotis and Miniopterus schreibersii were presented. The karyotype of Myotis myotis has a diploid number (2n) of 44, a fundamental number (NF) of 54, and an autosomal fundamental number (NFa) of 50. The 2n, NF, and NFa numbers of Miniopterus schreibersii were 46, 54, and 56, respectively. In Myotis myotis, a homomorphic NOR was localized in 1 of the medium-sized acrocentric pairs; however, NORs were located in 2 pairs on the secondary constriction of Miniopterus schreibersii. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bats and other vertebrates form large colonies concentrating key populations of multiple endangered species. Their foraging ranges are of critical importance for the colony but can be too vast to preserve in full extent. We evaluated an approach to prioritize areas within this range that conciliates the distinct needs of various species. Our model colony was a large cave-bat nursery harboring Rhinolophus mehelyi, Myotis myotis and Miniopterus schreibersii located in Southern Portugal. With radio-tracking data of foraging bats and spatially explicit modeling, we generated habitat suitability maps for each species. Models incorporated both habitat variables and distance to the roost. The resulting maps were then used separately or in combinations to identify the areas with greatest multispecies conservation value. The best results were obtained by combining individual suitabilities in a single value, weighting each species by its threat risk. Although the overall range of the colony was very extensive, this approach identified the areas that had most multispecies value; more than half of the foraging sites are included in the best 13% of the range, and adding the next best 12% includes almost all sites of the most threatened study species, R. mehelyi. The efficiency of the prioritization can be evaluated not only for the species ensemble, but also for individual species. The concentration of most multispecies conservation value in a small area is partly due to the importance of distance to roost as a determinant of foraging habitat selection in all species, so this factor is essential in suitability models used for prioritization. This prioritization process successfully minimizes the amount of land required for protection, while maximizing the quality of the habitat to protect. Such prioritizations should spur the preservation of foraging areas of large multispecies colonies, thus improving the chances of survival of populations of great conservation value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on a study on the postnatal growth of Miniopterus schreibersii pallidus, or the Long-fingered Bat in Iran. The study used a method of measuring estimated age based on forearm length and the total gap of the fourth metacarpal-phalanageal joint while in the pre-flight and post-flight periods. The author discusses the similarities of the Long-fingered Bat's postnatal growth pattern compared to other species of microbats and its importance on the onset of flight.

The article presents the study on the syntopic occurrence of bat species Miniopterus schreibersii schreibersii and M. Schreibersii pallidus in Turkey. It states that the difference between the two bat species were reflected in the morphology. The differentiation of the mitochondrial DNA was reflected in the nuclear DNA. It cites that the differentiation of the two species were shown in the frequency based assignment test. It also mentions that the species show differentiation in the phenotype and genomes.

Abstract: Many studies indicated that small mammals are important reservoirs for Bartonella species. Using molecular methods, several studies have documented that bats could harbor Bartonella. This study was conducted to investigate the relationship of Bartonella spp. identified in bats and small mammals living in the same ecological environment. During May 2009 and March 2010, a total of 102 blood specimens were collected. By whole blood culture and molecular identification, a total of 6 bats, 1 rodent and 9 shrews were shown to be infected by Bartonella species. After sequencing and phylogenetic analyses of the sequences of gltA, ftsZ, rpoB and ribC genes, these specific isolates from bats were not similar to the known Bartonella species (the similarity values were less than 91.2%, 90.5%, 88.8%, and 82.2%, respectively); these isolates formed an independent clade away from other known Bartonella type strains. The Bartonella spp. isolated from small mammals, which were closely related to Bartonella tribocorum, Bartonella elizabethae, Bartonella grahamii, Bartonella rattimassiliensis and Bartonella queenslandensis, were similar to the findings in previous studies worldwide. Therefore, the results implied that the species of Bartonella strains isolated from small mammals were different from those identified in bats. Our results strongly suggested that the bat isolate could be a new Bartonella species. This study is also the first one to isolate Bartonella organisms from Asian gray shrews, Crocidura attenuata tanakae. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

On 21 April 2011, an adult male of the Schreibers' bat (Miniopterus schreibersii) was caught in the Hranická propast (Hranická Chasm, 49° 32' N, 17° 45' E, 315 m a. s. l., Hranice na Moravě, Přerov District), from a crevice of the chasm wall above a pond. This record represents the first evidence of this bat species as well as a new family in the Czech Republic. It documents the affinity of marginal populations of the species to warmer cave systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The large bent-wing bat, Miniopterus schreibersii (Kuhl 1819), has a long history of taxonomic uncertainty and many populations are known to be in a state of decline. Microsatellite loci were developed for the taxonomic and population genetic assessment of the Australian complex of this species. Of the 33 primer sets designed for this research, seven (21%) were deemed suitably polymorphic for population-level analyses of the Australian taxa, with five (71%) of these loci revealing moderate to high levels of polymorphism (PIC = 0.56 to 0.91). The cross-taxa utility of the M. schreibersii microsatellite markers was assessed in the microbat (Chiroptera) family Miniopteridae. Sub-species and species covering the Miniopteridae's global distribution (with the exception of the Middle East) were selected, numbering 25 taxa in total. Amplification was successful for 26 loci, of which 20 (77%) were polymorphic. High cross-taxa utility of markers was observed with amplification achieved for all taxa for between four (20%) and 20 (100%) loci, and polymorphism was considered moderate to high (PIC = 0.47-0.91) for 12 (60%) of these loci. The high cross-taxa utility of the microsatellites reported herein reveal versatile and cost-effective molecular markers, contributing an important genetic resource for the research and conservation of Miniopteridae species worldwide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The jump performance of five insectivorous bat species (Miniopterus schreibersii, Myotis blythil, Myotis capaccinii, Myotis myotis and Rhinolophus biasii) was filmed using a high-speed camera. All study bats jumped using a similar technique, with the wing musculature providing the force. The bats jumped off the wrist joint of their wings, typically with their feet already off the ground. Contrary to expectations, jump performance did not correlate with ecology and was instead strongly determined by body size. In general, the larger bats produced more jump force, left the ground at higher speeds and jumped higher than the smaller bats. The differences in force production disappeared when the data were corrected for body size, with the exception of Myotis capaccinii, which produced significantly less force. Scaling of jump performance with body size measured here was compared against two existing muscle performance scaling models. The model suggesting that muscle contraction velocity is proportional to muscle length was better supported than that based on muscle cross-sectional area. Both models, however, failed to accurately predict the scaling of jump forces, with the slope of the relationship being significantly steeper than predicted, highlighting the need for further investigations of vertebrate muscle performance scaling. The results of this study indicate that a bat's jumping ability is a secondary locomotor ability that uses the strongly selected-for flight apparatus with no apparent ecological trend present, i.e. flight so dominates bat locomotor morphology that other locomotor abilities tend to be derivative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many colonial bat species make regional migrations, and the consequent gene flow may eliminate geographic genetic structure resulting from history of colonization. In this study, we verified that history and social organization have detectable impacts on the genetic structure of Miniopterus schreibersii, a cave-dwelling bat with high female philopatry. After studying all known nursing colonies in Portugal, we concluded that there is a significant geographic structure and that the overall pattern is similar for mitochondrial and nuclear DNA. Both pairwise ΦST and FST were significantly correlated with geographical distance, suggesting that isolation by distance is relevant for both mitochondrial and nuclear markers. However, structuring of mitochondrial DNA was much more marked than that of nuclear DNA, a consequence of the strong female philopatry arid a bias for male-mediated gene flow. Wintering colonies were more genetically diverse than nursing colonies because the former receive individuals from distinct breeding populations. Haplotype diversity of the northern colonies, the more recent according to population expansion analyses, is only about half of that of the central and southern colonies. This is most likely a consequence of the colonization history of M. schreibersii, which presumably expanded northward from the south of the Iberian Peninsula or North Africa after the last glacial age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study which examined the effect of gating the entrance to derelict mines on roosting bats in southeastern Australia. The study investigated whether the gate construction altered the number of bats occupying the mines, the flight behavior and the species composition of roosting bats. The study allotted an 11-day period of acclimatisation for each work process of gate construction to examine the extent to which the bats learnt to negotiate with the bars and thus habituate to new hurdles at the mine entrances before dawn.

The movements of the Schreibers' bat, Miniopterus schreibersii, in the regions of Navarre, La Rioja, and the western Basque Country were studied on a seasonal basis by means of ringing and recapture data. A total of 3014 bats were ringed in the study area, with recaptures accounting for 198. We found only three breeding colonies and no hibernacula in the study area. Distances between capture sites averaged 77 km (range 0-258 km) and varied seasonally. Distances between spring colonies and between autumn colonies were the shortest, whereas distances between spring and breeding colonies and between breeding and autumn colonies were the longest, as many bats moved to and from nursery roosts located outside of and far from the study area. The bats in the study area are part of a larger population that, at a minimum, extends over the central northern half of the Iberian Peninsula. Presumably individuals from different subpopulations mixed in the nursery roosts, returning to their respective quarters from autumn to spring. Both males and females joined the common breeding colonies, although a high proportion of males remained sedentary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The karyotypes of 2 bat species from Iran were examined. The diploid number of chromosomes (2n) and the fundamental numbers of chromosomal arms (NFa) were determined to be 2n = 44 and NFa = 54 for Myotis blythii and 2n = 46 and NFa = 50 for Miniopterus schreibersii, respectively. The karyotypes of Iranian bats show similarity within populations in other countries with respect to the diploid chromosome numbers; however, they are quite different in the fundamental chromosome numbers and the numbers of autosomal arms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ectoparasitism may be recognized as one of the main costs of coloniality, but little is known about how it affects the fitness and social structure of bats, the most gregarious of mammals. We studied these issues using the colonial bat Miniopterus schreibersii and its haematophagous parasitic mite Spinturnix psi as a model. Body condition is an important indicator of individual fitness that is potentially affected by ectoparasitism. Thus, we measured host body condition and mite loads in a total of 969 bats throughout the annual cycle. Mites were rare while hosts hibernated, increased in abundance in spring and peaked during nursing season of bats, when they were particularly abundant on lactating females and young bats. This strong seasonal variation in mite loads is related to the reproductive cycle of mites, which in turn appears to be synchronized with the reproductive cycle of their hosts. Mite loads and the condition of bats were negatively correlated, and information available suggests that this may be due to an effect of parasitism, although other possible causes for this trend cannot be excluded. However, a negative correlation was only observed during the bat's nursing season, when mites were most abundant, and heavily parasitized bats lost about 10% of their weight. Mite parasitism did not seem to be a significant disadvantage of coloniality, except in nurseries, where it might impose some costs. However, as females and young usually aggregate in these colonies, we presume that for them such costs are probably offset by advantages of group living. Adult males, however, are usually absent from nurseries, which may be a strategy to minimize mite parasitism. Overall, the results suggest that ectoparasitism may play a role in determining the social structure of M. schreibersii and of many other temperate bats that have similar life cycles and ectoparasitic loads. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In June 2020, a cat from Arezzo (Italy) that died from a neurological disease was diagnosed with West Caucasian Bat Lyssavirus (WCBV). The virus retained high identity across the whole-genome with the reference isolate found in 2002 from a Russian bent-winged bat. We applied control measures recommended by national regulations, investigated a possible interface between cats and bats using visual inspections, bioacoustics analyses and camera trapping and performed active and passive surveillance in bats to trace the source of infection. People that were exposed to the cat received full post-exposure prophylaxis while animals underwent six months of quarantine. One year later, they are all healthy. In a tunnel located near the cat's house, we identified a group of bent-winged bats that showed virus-neutralizing antibodies to WCBV across four sampling occasions, but no virus in salivary swabs. Carcasses from other bat species were all negative. This description of WCBV in a non-flying mammal confirms that this virus can cause clinical rabies in the absence of preventive and therapeutic measures, and highlights the lack of international guidelines against divergent lyssaviruses. We detected bent-winged bats as the most probable source of infection, testifying the encroachment between these bats and pets/human in urban areas and confirming free-ranging cats as potential hazard for public health and conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Bats, in terms of variety of species and their absolute numbers, are the most successful mammals on earth. The anatomical and functional peculiarities of Microchiroptera are not confined only to the auditory system; the wings (hands) of bats are unique both from an anatomical point of view as from a sensorial one. They are much thinner than those of birds and their bony structure is much more similar to a primate hand than to the forelimb of other mammals of the bat''s size; the thumb, is very small and on its distal end there is a little claw that bats use for crawling and manipulating food. However, despite this very frequent use of the hands for food catching and for walking, nothing is known about the existence of a preferential use of the hands in Microchiroptera. The present study investigates the existence of handedness in the Schreiber''s Long-Fingered Bat by recording the preferential use of the hand while climbing the walls of a plastic cylinder. This bat species is lateralized at population level and shows a left forelimb bias when using hands for climbing/grasping. This result is the first evidence of population-level handedness in an echolocating bat species. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract. Large numbers of the nycteribiid species Nycteribia parilis vicaria Maa, Penicillidia (Penicillidia) oceanica Bigot and Penicillidia (Penicillidia) Maa (Diptera: Nycteribiidae) were collected from the bat Miniopterus schreibersii Kuhl (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) during a study on this bat's population genetics conducted largely in southern Australia. Bats were trapped in all seasons and at a number of locations throughout the ranges of the nycteribiids. Nycteribia parilis vicaria was the most common species captured. Gravid females of the three species were trapped in spring and summer and gravid female P. (P.) oceanica and N. parilis vicaria were trapped in autumn. Newly emerged adults of P. (P.) oceanica and N. parilis vicaria were captured in spring and autumn. Nycteribiid loads for individual bats were low, and there was no direct evidence of a detrimental effect on bats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bats are particularly suited as bioindicators of trace element pollution due to their longevity and their position in the trophic chain. In this study, the concentrations of ten non-essential trace elements (Al, As, Ba, Cd, Hg, Pb, Sb, Sr, Th, Tl) were determined in the tissues (whole body, skin-fur, skinned body, liver, kidney and bone) of lactant Tadarida teniotis from a nursery colony in Rome. A large number of bats from this nursery died before fledging and had bone deformities and fractures. The concentrations of non-essential trace elements in bone and whole body were also analysed in adult specimens of Miniopterus schreibersii from a colony located in a natural park in Northern Italy. In lactant T. teniotis , the Pb concentration decreased in the following order: bone>liver>skinned body>whole body>skin-fur>kidney, and exceeded the toxic threshold associated with negative effects reported for different mammalian species. The levels of the other non-essential trace elements were within a range indicative of low environmental contamination in both species. Significant interspecies differences (P < 0.05) were observed for concentrations of Pb and Ba, higher in the bones of T. teniotis , and of Cd, Hg and Sr, higher in the bones of M. schreibersii. In lactant T. teniotis , the different sources of Pb exposure, through inhalation and/or food, may represent a potential threat to the colony of this synanthropic European bat. Image 1 • Metal concentrations were determined in tissues of T. teniotis and M. schreibersii. • Lactant T. teniotis presented the highest Pb concentrations in all tissues analysed. • Significant interspecific differences were observed in bone for Pb, Ba, Hg and Sr. • Bats can be considered useful monitors of environmental metal pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]