Winter diet of the noctule bat Nyctalus noctula

Title:

Winter diet of the noctule bat Nyctalus noctula

Creator:

Kaňuch, Peter, Janečková, Katarína, and Krištín, Anton

Identifier:

https://cdk.lib.cas.cz/client/handle/uuid:08842a94-3f23-493e-81ae-25e927b8b460
uuid:08842a94-3f23-493e-81ae-25e927b8b460

Subject:

Chiroptera, foraging ecology, winter, and Europe

Type:

article and TEXT

Description:

The food composition of noctule bats (Nyctalus noctula) was investigated using droppings analyses methods (29 samples/ 322 pellets) over two winters (2001/2002 and 2002/2003) in ten urban and rural localities in Central Europe (Slovakia, Czech Republic). Two orders of arachnids (Araneida, Acarina) and nine orders of insects (Homoptera, Heteroptera, Psocoptera, Neuroptera, Coleoptera, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera, Diptera, Siphonaptera) were identified in the droppings. The most important order in all samples was Lepidoptera (mean F = 53 %, mean V = 35 %), followed by Diptera (F = 38 %, V = 12 %), Coleoptera (F = 21 %, V = 9 %) and Araneida (F = 15 %, V = 3 %). Differences were found in the composition of the most important food components among two urban and one rural locality as well as in the portion of secondary components (hair, slime). Regarding seasonal changes in the food composition, three periods were identified in winter – the beginning (November – January), the middle (February) and the end of the season (March). Some seasonal trends could be identified in the Diptera and Coleoptera, with a decrease in frequency and volume in the middle of the winter. The most important food component (Lepidoptera) showed no seasonal trend over winter. The bats could hunt insects outside or collect them also very probably directly in the shelters.

Language:

English

Rights:

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/

Source:

Folia zoologica | 2005 Volume:54 | Number:1-2

Harvested from:

CDK

Metadata only:

false