Valeria B. Salinas-Ramos | Università degli Studi di Napoli "Federico II" (original) (raw)

Papers by Valeria B. Salinas-Ramos

bioRxiv, 2020

Along with its many advantages, social roosting imposes a major risk of pathogen transmission. Ho... more Along with its many advantages, social roosting imposes a major risk of pathogen transmission. How social animals, and especially free-ranging mammals, reduce this risk is poorly documented. We used lipopolysaccharide injection to imitate bacterial sickness in both a captive and a free-ranging colony of an extremely social, long lived mammal – the Egyptian fruit bat. We monitored behavioral and physiological responses using an arsenal of methods, including on-board GPS and acceleration, video, temperature and weight measurements, and blood samples. Sick-like bats exhibited an increased immune response, as well as classical illness symptoms including fever, weight loss, anorexia, and lethargy. Notably, they also isolated themselves from the group by leaving the social cluster and avoiding contact. Free-ranging individuals ceased foraging outdoors for at least two nights. Together, these sickness behaviors demonstrate a strong, integrative immune response which promotes recovery of in...

Environmental Pollution, 2021

Artificial light at night (ALAN) is a pervasive form of pollution largely affecting wildlife, fro... more Artificial light at night (ALAN) is a pervasive form of pollution largely affecting wildlife, from individual behaviour to community structure and dynamics. As nocturnal mammals, bats are often adversely affected by ALAN, yet some "light-opportunistic" species exploit it by hunting insects swarming near lights. Here we used two potentially competing pipistrelle species as models, Kuhl's (Pipistrellus kuhlii) and common (Pipistrellus pipistrellus) pipistrelles, both known to forage in artificially illuminated areas. We set our study in a mountainous area of central Italy, where only recently did the two species become syntopic. We applied spatial modelling and radiotracking to contrast potential vs. actual environmental preferences by the two pipistrelles. Species distribution models and niche analysis showed a large interspecific niche overlap, including a preference for illuminated areas, presenting a potential competition scenario. Pipistrellus pipistrellus association with ALAN, however, was weakened by adding P. kuhlii as a biotic variable to the model. Radiotracking showed that the two species segregated habitats at a small spatial scale and that P. kuhlii used artificially illuminated sites much more frequently than P. pipistrellus, despite both species potentially being streetlamp foragers. We demonstrate that ALAN influences niche segregation between two potentially competing species, confirming its pervasive effects on species and community dynamics, and provide an example of how light pollution and species' habitat preferences may weave a tapestry of complex ecological interactions.

Biology, 2021

Bats show responses to anthropogenic stressors linked to changes in other ecosystem components su... more Bats show responses to anthropogenic stressors linked to changes in other ecosystem components such as insects, and as K-selected mammals, exhibit fast population declines. This speciose, widespread mammal group shows an impressive trophic diversity and provides key ecosystem services. For these and other reasons, bats might act as suitable bioindicators in many environmental contexts. However, few studies have explicitly tested this potential, and in some cases, stating that bats are useful bioindicators more closely resembles a slogan to support conservation than a well-grounded piece of scientific evidence. Here, we review the available information and highlight the limitations that arise in using bats as bioindicators. Based on the limited number of studies available, the use of bats as bioindicators is highly promising and warrants further investigation in specific contexts such as river quality, urbanisation, farming practices, forestry, bioaccumulation, and climate change. Wh...

Mammal Review, 2021

Climate change is among the key anthropogenic factors affecting species’ distribution, with impor... more Climate change is among the key anthropogenic factors affecting species’ distribution, with important consequences for conservation. However, little is known concerning the consequences of distributional changes on community‐level interactions, and responses by generalist species might have many ecological implications in terms of novel interactions with resident species. In this study, we applied Ecological Niche Models and niche analysis to three generalist bat species, Hypsugo savii, Pipistrellus kuhlii, and Pipistrellus pipistrellus, which share similar ecological traits and are sympatric in parts of their ranges. Our aims were to investigate how predicted climate change will affect species’ distribution and to analyse the degree of climatic niche overlap between the three species, in both the current and the future scenarios (2050 and 2070; Representative Concentration Pathways 4.5 and 8.5). Temperatures were the most important predictors influencing species’ range expansion in...

Pathogens, 2021

Bats are often unfairly depicted as the direct culprit in the current COVID-19 pandemic, yet the ... more Bats are often unfairly depicted as the direct culprit in the current COVID-19 pandemic, yet the real causes of this and other zoonotic spillover events should be sought in the human impact on the environment, including the spread of domestic animals. Here, we discuss bat predation by cats as a phenomenon bringing about zoonotic risks and illustrate cases of observed, suspected or hypothesized pathogen transmission from bats to cats, certainly or likely following predation episodes. In addition to well-known cases of bat rabies, we review other diseases that affect humans and might eventually reach them through cats that prey on bats. We also examine the potential transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the causal agent of COVID-19, from domestic cats to bats, which, although unlikely, might generate a novel wildlife reservoir in these mammals, and identify research and management directions to achieve more effective risk assessment, mitigation or prevention. Overall, not only does bat killing ...

Biology, 2020

Body size in animals commonly shows geographic and temporal variations that may depend upon sever... more Body size in animals commonly shows geographic and temporal variations that may depend upon several environmental drivers, including climatic conditions, productivity, geography and species interactions. The topic of body size trends across time has gained momentum in recent years since this has been proposed as a third universal response to climate change along with changes in distribution and phenology. However, disentangling the genuine effects of climate change from those of other environmental factors is often far from trivial. In this study, we tested a set of hypotheses concerning body size variation across time and space in Italian populations of a rhinolophid bat, the lesser horseshoe bat Rhinolophus hipposideros. We examined forearm length (FAL) and cranial linear traits in a unique historical collection of this species covering years from 1869 to 2016, representing, to the best of our knowledge, the longest time series ever considered in a morphological assessment of a ba...

Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 2021

Along with its many advantages, social roosting imposes a major risk of pathogen transmission. Ho... more Along with its many advantages, social roosting imposes a major risk of pathogen transmission. How social animals reduce this risk is poorly documented. We used lipopolysaccharide challenge to imitate bacterial infection in both a captive and a free‐living colony of an extremely social, long‐lived mammal—the Egyptian fruit bat. We monitored behavioral and physiological responses using an arsenal of methods, including onboard GPS to track foraging, acceleration sensors to monitor movement, infrared video to record social behavior, and blood samples to measure immune markers. Sick‐like (immune‐challenged) bats exhibited an increased immune response, as well as classic illness symptoms, including fever, weight loss, anorexia, and lethargy. Notably, the bats also exhibited behaviors that would reduce pathogen transfer. They perched alone and appeared to voluntarily isolate themselves from the group by leaving the social cluster, which is extremely atypical for this species. The sick‐lik...

Mammal Review, 2019

Interspecific competition (IC) is often seen as a main driver of evolutionary patterns and commun... more Interspecific competition (IC) is often seen as a main driver of evolutionary patterns and community structure. Bats might compete for key resources, and cases of exaggerated divergence of resource‐related characters or trait overdispersion in bat assemblages are often explained in terms of current or past interspecific competition. However, other pressures leading to patterns that mimic the outcome of competition cannot always be ruled out. We present the state of knowledge on IC among bats, providing a critical evaluation of the information available and identifying open questions and challenges. We reviewed 100 documents addressing potential or actual IC in bats and categorised them in terms of the resource for which bats compete (food, foraging habitat, roosts, water, and acoustic space). We also examined the ecomorphological and behavioural traits considered therein to highlight responses to IC or niche partitioning. We found that: although resources should be limiting in order...

The Canadian Entomologist, 2018

Nine species of the gall-associated doryctine genus Allorhogas Gahan (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) ar... more Nine species of the gall-associated doryctine genus Allorhogas Gahan (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) are described from Brazil (A. clidemiae Martínez and Zaldívar-Riverón new species, A. granivorus Zaldívar-Riverón and Martínez new species, A. mineiro Zaldívar-Riverón and Martínez new species, and A. vulgaris Zaldívar-Riverón and Martínez new species) and Costa Rica (A. brevithorax Zaldívar-Riverón and Martínez new species, A. pallidus Martínez and Zaldívar-Riverón new species, A. psychotria Zaldívar-Riverón and Martínez new species, A. punctatus Martínez and Zaldívar-Riverón new species, and A. tico Martínez and Zaldívar-Riverón new species). We provide host plant records for the described species, including information that reveals that at least three of them feed on seeds. Allorhogas granivorus had previously been confirmed to represent a natural enemy of the invasive weed Miconia calvescens de Candolle (Melastomataceae). Updated keys to the species of Allorhogas from Brazil and Costa ...

Landscape and Urban Planning, 2019

Mammalia, 2017

Seasonality of climate promotes differences in abundance and species composition of parasites, af... more Seasonality of climate promotes differences in abundance and species composition of parasites, affecting host-parasite interactions. Studies have reported seasonal variation in bat-flies, which are obligate bat ectoparasites. We characterized the bat-fly load of three insectivores [Pteronotus davyi (Gray), Pteronotus parnellii (Gray) and Pteronotus personatus (Wagner)] and one nectarivorous [Leptonycteris yerbabuenae (Martínez and Villa-R.)] bat species in a tropical dry forest to test the existence of seasonality in response to the availability of resources during the wet and dry seasons. We collected 3710 bat-fly specimens belonging to six species and two genera from 497 bats. Most of the ectoparasite load parameters examined (mean abundance, mean intensity, richness, etc.), including comparisons among reproductive conditions and sex of the host, were similar in both seasons. Prevalence was the parameter that varied the most between seasons. The six bat-fly species were found in a...

Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad, 2017

Genome, 2015

The 6th International Barcode of Life Conference (Guelph, Canada, 18–21 August 2015), themed Barc... more The 6th International Barcode of Life Conference (Guelph, Canada, 18–21 August 2015), themed Barcodes to Biomes, showcases the latest developments in DNA barcoding research and its diverse applications. The meeting also provides a venue for a global research community to share ideas and to initiate collaborations. All plenary and contributed abstracts are being published as an open-access special issue of Genome. Here, I use a comparison with the 3rd Conference (Mexico City, 2009) to highlight 10 recent and emerging trends that are apparent among the contributed abstracts. One of the outstanding trends is the rising proportion of abstracts that focus upon multiple socio-economically important applications of DNA barcoding, including studies of agricultural pests, quarantine and invasive species, wildlife forensics, disease vectors, biomonitoring of ecosystem health, and marketplace surveys evaluating the authenticity of seafood products and medicinal plants. Other key movements incl...

Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad, 2013

Mammalian Biology

Variation in body size is thought as one of the main responses to climate change, yet studies exp... more Variation in body size is thought as one of the main responses to climate change, yet studies exploring the existence of this pattern are limited by the scarcity of long temporal datasets. Bats are promising candidates for the occurrence of climate-driven changes in body size because their life cycle is highly sensitive to ambient temperature. Although a reduction in body size would adaptively imply more efficient heat dissipation under a climate change scenario, dehydration caused by heatwaves would in fact be limited by a larger body size, so either responses may be predicted. An increasing body size over time might also be the consequence of a longer growth season secured by a warmer climate. On such bases, we tested the hypothesis that body size varied in the bat Rhinolophus ferrumequinum from Italian populations between 1869 and 2005 by examining forearm length (FAL) in 78 spatially independent specimens, and found that FAL increased over that period. We also ruled out that body size varied over space in relation to latitude (as predicted by Bergmann’s rule) or insularity, besides confirming the occurrence of sexual dimorphism (females being larger than males). This study illustrates a rare example of an increasing body size trend in a mammal species measured over ca. a century and a half, potentially unveiling a response to environmental variation.

Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad, 2024

Taxonomy and systematics Leaf gall diversity in the neotropical plant Coccoloba barbadensis (Poly... more Taxonomy and systematics Leaf gall diversity in the neotropical plant Coccoloba barbadensis (Polygonaceae) and its associated insect species richness Diversidad de agallas de hojas en la planta neotropical Coccoloba barbadensis (Polygonaceae) y riqueza de especies de sus insectos asociados

Biology

Climate change is exerting a broad range of (mostly adverse) effects on biodiversity, and more ar... more Climate change is exerting a broad range of (mostly adverse) effects on biodiversity, and more are expected under future scenarios. Impacts on species that deliver key ecosystem services, such as bats, are especially concerning, so their better understanding is key to preventing or mitigating them. Due to their physiological requirements, bats are especially sensitive to environmental temperatures and water availability, and heatwave-related mortality has been reported for flying foxes and, more anecdotally, other bat species. For temperate regions, to date, no study has highlighted an association between temperature extremes and bat mortality, mostly due to the difficulty of relying on data series covering long timespans. Heatwaves may affect bats, causing thermal shock and acute dehydration so bats can fall from the roost and, in some cases, are rescued by the public and brought to wildlife rehabilitation centres (WRCs). In our work, we considered a dataset spanning over 20 years ...

bioRxiv, 2020

Along with its many advantages, social roosting imposes a major risk of pathogen transmission. Ho... more Along with its many advantages, social roosting imposes a major risk of pathogen transmission. How social animals, and especially free-ranging mammals, reduce this risk is poorly documented. We used lipopolysaccharide injection to imitate bacterial sickness in both a captive and a free-ranging colony of an extremely social, long lived mammal – the Egyptian fruit bat. We monitored behavioral and physiological responses using an arsenal of methods, including on-board GPS and acceleration, video, temperature and weight measurements, and blood samples. Sick-like bats exhibited an increased immune response, as well as classical illness symptoms including fever, weight loss, anorexia, and lethargy. Notably, they also isolated themselves from the group by leaving the social cluster and avoiding contact. Free-ranging individuals ceased foraging outdoors for at least two nights. Together, these sickness behaviors demonstrate a strong, integrative immune response which promotes recovery of in...

Environmental Pollution, 2021

Artificial light at night (ALAN) is a pervasive form of pollution largely affecting wildlife, fro... more Artificial light at night (ALAN) is a pervasive form of pollution largely affecting wildlife, from individual behaviour to community structure and dynamics. As nocturnal mammals, bats are often adversely affected by ALAN, yet some "light-opportunistic" species exploit it by hunting insects swarming near lights. Here we used two potentially competing pipistrelle species as models, Kuhl's (Pipistrellus kuhlii) and common (Pipistrellus pipistrellus) pipistrelles, both known to forage in artificially illuminated areas. We set our study in a mountainous area of central Italy, where only recently did the two species become syntopic. We applied spatial modelling and radiotracking to contrast potential vs. actual environmental preferences by the two pipistrelles. Species distribution models and niche analysis showed a large interspecific niche overlap, including a preference for illuminated areas, presenting a potential competition scenario. Pipistrellus pipistrellus association with ALAN, however, was weakened by adding P. kuhlii as a biotic variable to the model. Radiotracking showed that the two species segregated habitats at a small spatial scale and that P. kuhlii used artificially illuminated sites much more frequently than P. pipistrellus, despite both species potentially being streetlamp foragers. We demonstrate that ALAN influences niche segregation between two potentially competing species, confirming its pervasive effects on species and community dynamics, and provide an example of how light pollution and species' habitat preferences may weave a tapestry of complex ecological interactions.

Biology, 2021

Bats show responses to anthropogenic stressors linked to changes in other ecosystem components su... more Bats show responses to anthropogenic stressors linked to changes in other ecosystem components such as insects, and as K-selected mammals, exhibit fast population declines. This speciose, widespread mammal group shows an impressive trophic diversity and provides key ecosystem services. For these and other reasons, bats might act as suitable bioindicators in many environmental contexts. However, few studies have explicitly tested this potential, and in some cases, stating that bats are useful bioindicators more closely resembles a slogan to support conservation than a well-grounded piece of scientific evidence. Here, we review the available information and highlight the limitations that arise in using bats as bioindicators. Based on the limited number of studies available, the use of bats as bioindicators is highly promising and warrants further investigation in specific contexts such as river quality, urbanisation, farming practices, forestry, bioaccumulation, and climate change. Wh...

Mammal Review, 2021

Climate change is among the key anthropogenic factors affecting species’ distribution, with impor... more Climate change is among the key anthropogenic factors affecting species’ distribution, with important consequences for conservation. However, little is known concerning the consequences of distributional changes on community‐level interactions, and responses by generalist species might have many ecological implications in terms of novel interactions with resident species. In this study, we applied Ecological Niche Models and niche analysis to three generalist bat species, Hypsugo savii, Pipistrellus kuhlii, and Pipistrellus pipistrellus, which share similar ecological traits and are sympatric in parts of their ranges. Our aims were to investigate how predicted climate change will affect species’ distribution and to analyse the degree of climatic niche overlap between the three species, in both the current and the future scenarios (2050 and 2070; Representative Concentration Pathways 4.5 and 8.5). Temperatures were the most important predictors influencing species’ range expansion in...

Pathogens, 2021

Bats are often unfairly depicted as the direct culprit in the current COVID-19 pandemic, yet the ... more Bats are often unfairly depicted as the direct culprit in the current COVID-19 pandemic, yet the real causes of this and other zoonotic spillover events should be sought in the human impact on the environment, including the spread of domestic animals. Here, we discuss bat predation by cats as a phenomenon bringing about zoonotic risks and illustrate cases of observed, suspected or hypothesized pathogen transmission from bats to cats, certainly or likely following predation episodes. In addition to well-known cases of bat rabies, we review other diseases that affect humans and might eventually reach them through cats that prey on bats. We also examine the potential transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the causal agent of COVID-19, from domestic cats to bats, which, although unlikely, might generate a novel wildlife reservoir in these mammals, and identify research and management directions to achieve more effective risk assessment, mitigation or prevention. Overall, not only does bat killing ...

Biology, 2020

Body size in animals commonly shows geographic and temporal variations that may depend upon sever... more Body size in animals commonly shows geographic and temporal variations that may depend upon several environmental drivers, including climatic conditions, productivity, geography and species interactions. The topic of body size trends across time has gained momentum in recent years since this has been proposed as a third universal response to climate change along with changes in distribution and phenology. However, disentangling the genuine effects of climate change from those of other environmental factors is often far from trivial. In this study, we tested a set of hypotheses concerning body size variation across time and space in Italian populations of a rhinolophid bat, the lesser horseshoe bat Rhinolophus hipposideros. We examined forearm length (FAL) and cranial linear traits in a unique historical collection of this species covering years from 1869 to 2016, representing, to the best of our knowledge, the longest time series ever considered in a morphological assessment of a ba...

Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 2021

Along with its many advantages, social roosting imposes a major risk of pathogen transmission. Ho... more Along with its many advantages, social roosting imposes a major risk of pathogen transmission. How social animals reduce this risk is poorly documented. We used lipopolysaccharide challenge to imitate bacterial infection in both a captive and a free‐living colony of an extremely social, long‐lived mammal—the Egyptian fruit bat. We monitored behavioral and physiological responses using an arsenal of methods, including onboard GPS to track foraging, acceleration sensors to monitor movement, infrared video to record social behavior, and blood samples to measure immune markers. Sick‐like (immune‐challenged) bats exhibited an increased immune response, as well as classic illness symptoms, including fever, weight loss, anorexia, and lethargy. Notably, the bats also exhibited behaviors that would reduce pathogen transfer. They perched alone and appeared to voluntarily isolate themselves from the group by leaving the social cluster, which is extremely atypical for this species. The sick‐lik...

Mammal Review, 2019

Interspecific competition (IC) is often seen as a main driver of evolutionary patterns and commun... more Interspecific competition (IC) is often seen as a main driver of evolutionary patterns and community structure. Bats might compete for key resources, and cases of exaggerated divergence of resource‐related characters or trait overdispersion in bat assemblages are often explained in terms of current or past interspecific competition. However, other pressures leading to patterns that mimic the outcome of competition cannot always be ruled out. We present the state of knowledge on IC among bats, providing a critical evaluation of the information available and identifying open questions and challenges. We reviewed 100 documents addressing potential or actual IC in bats and categorised them in terms of the resource for which bats compete (food, foraging habitat, roosts, water, and acoustic space). We also examined the ecomorphological and behavioural traits considered therein to highlight responses to IC or niche partitioning. We found that: although resources should be limiting in order...

The Canadian Entomologist, 2018

Nine species of the gall-associated doryctine genus Allorhogas Gahan (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) ar... more Nine species of the gall-associated doryctine genus Allorhogas Gahan (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) are described from Brazil (A. clidemiae Martínez and Zaldívar-Riverón new species, A. granivorus Zaldívar-Riverón and Martínez new species, A. mineiro Zaldívar-Riverón and Martínez new species, and A. vulgaris Zaldívar-Riverón and Martínez new species) and Costa Rica (A. brevithorax Zaldívar-Riverón and Martínez new species, A. pallidus Martínez and Zaldívar-Riverón new species, A. psychotria Zaldívar-Riverón and Martínez new species, A. punctatus Martínez and Zaldívar-Riverón new species, and A. tico Martínez and Zaldívar-Riverón new species). We provide host plant records for the described species, including information that reveals that at least three of them feed on seeds. Allorhogas granivorus had previously been confirmed to represent a natural enemy of the invasive weed Miconia calvescens de Candolle (Melastomataceae). Updated keys to the species of Allorhogas from Brazil and Costa ...

Landscape and Urban Planning, 2019

Mammalia, 2017

Seasonality of climate promotes differences in abundance and species composition of parasites, af... more Seasonality of climate promotes differences in abundance and species composition of parasites, affecting host-parasite interactions. Studies have reported seasonal variation in bat-flies, which are obligate bat ectoparasites. We characterized the bat-fly load of three insectivores [Pteronotus davyi (Gray), Pteronotus parnellii (Gray) and Pteronotus personatus (Wagner)] and one nectarivorous [Leptonycteris yerbabuenae (Martínez and Villa-R.)] bat species in a tropical dry forest to test the existence of seasonality in response to the availability of resources during the wet and dry seasons. We collected 3710 bat-fly specimens belonging to six species and two genera from 497 bats. Most of the ectoparasite load parameters examined (mean abundance, mean intensity, richness, etc.), including comparisons among reproductive conditions and sex of the host, were similar in both seasons. Prevalence was the parameter that varied the most between seasons. The six bat-fly species were found in a...

Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad, 2017

Genome, 2015

The 6th International Barcode of Life Conference (Guelph, Canada, 18–21 August 2015), themed Barc... more The 6th International Barcode of Life Conference (Guelph, Canada, 18–21 August 2015), themed Barcodes to Biomes, showcases the latest developments in DNA barcoding research and its diverse applications. The meeting also provides a venue for a global research community to share ideas and to initiate collaborations. All plenary and contributed abstracts are being published as an open-access special issue of Genome. Here, I use a comparison with the 3rd Conference (Mexico City, 2009) to highlight 10 recent and emerging trends that are apparent among the contributed abstracts. One of the outstanding trends is the rising proportion of abstracts that focus upon multiple socio-economically important applications of DNA barcoding, including studies of agricultural pests, quarantine and invasive species, wildlife forensics, disease vectors, biomonitoring of ecosystem health, and marketplace surveys evaluating the authenticity of seafood products and medicinal plants. Other key movements incl...

Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad, 2013

Mammalian Biology

Variation in body size is thought as one of the main responses to climate change, yet studies exp... more Variation in body size is thought as one of the main responses to climate change, yet studies exploring the existence of this pattern are limited by the scarcity of long temporal datasets. Bats are promising candidates for the occurrence of climate-driven changes in body size because their life cycle is highly sensitive to ambient temperature. Although a reduction in body size would adaptively imply more efficient heat dissipation under a climate change scenario, dehydration caused by heatwaves would in fact be limited by a larger body size, so either responses may be predicted. An increasing body size over time might also be the consequence of a longer growth season secured by a warmer climate. On such bases, we tested the hypothesis that body size varied in the bat Rhinolophus ferrumequinum from Italian populations between 1869 and 2005 by examining forearm length (FAL) in 78 spatially independent specimens, and found that FAL increased over that period. We also ruled out that body size varied over space in relation to latitude (as predicted by Bergmann’s rule) or insularity, besides confirming the occurrence of sexual dimorphism (females being larger than males). This study illustrates a rare example of an increasing body size trend in a mammal species measured over ca. a century and a half, potentially unveiling a response to environmental variation.

Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad, 2024

Taxonomy and systematics Leaf gall diversity in the neotropical plant Coccoloba barbadensis (Poly... more Taxonomy and systematics Leaf gall diversity in the neotropical plant Coccoloba barbadensis (Polygonaceae) and its associated insect species richness Diversidad de agallas de hojas en la planta neotropical Coccoloba barbadensis (Polygonaceae) y riqueza de especies de sus insectos asociados

Biology

Climate change is exerting a broad range of (mostly adverse) effects on biodiversity, and more ar... more Climate change is exerting a broad range of (mostly adverse) effects on biodiversity, and more are expected under future scenarios. Impacts on species that deliver key ecosystem services, such as bats, are especially concerning, so their better understanding is key to preventing or mitigating them. Due to their physiological requirements, bats are especially sensitive to environmental temperatures and water availability, and heatwave-related mortality has been reported for flying foxes and, more anecdotally, other bat species. For temperate regions, to date, no study has highlighted an association between temperature extremes and bat mortality, mostly due to the difficulty of relying on data series covering long timespans. Heatwaves may affect bats, causing thermal shock and acute dehydration so bats can fall from the roost and, in some cases, are rescued by the public and brought to wildlife rehabilitation centres (WRCs). In our work, we considered a dataset spanning over 20 years ...

Genome, 2015

species' interactions are integral to understanding ecological processes such as competition and ... more species' interactions are integral to understanding ecological processes such as competition and niche partitioning. However, observing and describing these relationships is challenging, particularly among generalist insectivores. Traditionally, morphological classification of digested prey has been used to limited effect. DNA barcoding provides a powerful solution to characterize these relationships, providing species-level identifications even from degraded material. When coupled with next-generation sequencing, these techniques allow us to unravel the complexity of interactions between predators and prey even in the most complex systems. Results: We applied DNA metabarcoding to study three species of Pteronotus from a cave in Don Panchito Island in Chamela, Jalisco, México. This area is characterized by seasonal tropical dry forest. We investigate seasonal effects and the degree of overlap and breadth of diet among bats that share roost and foraging areas. Lepidoptera and dipterans were the most consumed insect orders, and there was a moderate level of dietary overlap between wet and dry seasons. The highest degree of overlap was between P. parnellii and P. personatus during the wet season. We found more overlap in insects consumed between species in the same seasons than within any single species across seasons. P. davyi and P. personatus increase their dietary breadth during the dry season, and the diet of P. parnellii was broader and had the highest effective number of species in all cases. Significance: Our results suggest that the diet of these sympatric species is driven more by prey availability than predator characteristic tracking seasonal resources that vary throughout the year. This study provides one of the first detailed views of tropical insectivores and their relationship with resources.

Along with its many advantages, social roosting imposes a major risk of pathogen transmission. Ho... more Along with its many advantages, social roosting imposes a major risk of pathogen transmission. How social animals, and especially free-ranging mammals, reduce this risk is poorly documented. We used lipopolysaccharide injection to imitate bacterial sickness in both a captive and a free-ranging colony of an extremely social mammal-the Egyptian fruit bat. We monitored behavioral and physiological responses using an arsenal of methods, including on-board GPS and acceleration, video, temperature and weight measurements, and blood samples. Sick-like bats exhibited an increased immune response, as well as classical illness symptoms including fever, weight loss, anorexia, and lethargy. Notably, they also isolated themselves from the group by leaving the social cluster and avoiding contact. Free-ranging individuals ceased foraging outdoors for at least two nights. Together, these sickness behaviors demonstrate a strong, integrative immune response which protects both individuals and their group members from transmission of pathogens.