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-Patterns of seasonal occupancy at the Isla Carmen maternity roost in mid-Baja (A) and the Chivato maternity and mating roost in southern Baja (B) from daily detections of bats marked with pit tags passing through antennae at roost entrances. Gray boxes indicate periods when the tag reader was not functioning.
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Migratory species that cross geopolitical boundaries pose challenges for conservation planning because threats may vary across a species' range and multi-country collaboration is required to implement conservation action plans. The lesser long-nosed bat (Leptonycteris yerbabuenae) is a migratory pollinator bat that was removed from the Endangered S...
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... (Table 3). We used Akaike's informa- tion criteria (AIC) for model selection (Burnham and Anderson 2002). We also calculated the fraction of tagged bats from each tagging occasion detected by roost antennae each day from January 2015 to February 2018 at 2 focal roost sites in the mid- and southern peninsula (Carmen and Chivato, respectively; Fig. ...
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... marked with pit tags were detected daily at the Carmen maternity roost from mid-March to mid-July (Fig. 3A), closely corresponding to the seasonal phenology of flower- ing and fruiting of cardón cacti ( Fleming et al. 2001). In contrast, tagged bats were detected nearly year-round at the Chivato roost, although very few bats were detected from November to mid-February (Fig. 3B). At both sites, daily detections of tagged bats were ...
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... detected daily at the Carmen maternity roost from mid-March to mid-July (Fig. 3A), closely corresponding to the seasonal phenology of flower- ing and fruiting of cardón cacti ( Fleming et al. 2001). In contrast, tagged bats were detected nearly year-round at the Chivato roost, although very few bats were detected from November to mid-February (Fig. 3B). At both sites, daily detections of tagged bats were substantially higher in the season they were initially tagged than in following seasons. At Chivato, the fraction of daily detections was consistently lower for bats tagged during January, suggesting the major- ity of bats using the site during mid-winter migrate else- where in other ...
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... At both sites, daily detections of tagged bats were substantially higher in the season they were initially tagged than in following seasons. At Chivato, the fraction of daily detections was consistently lower for bats tagged during January, suggesting the major- ity of bats using the site during mid-winter migrate else- where in other seasons (Fig. ...
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The endangered Mexican long-nosed bat (Leptonycteris nivalis) is a migratory nectar-feeder that occurs in high-elevation, semi-arid, pine-oak woodlands and Chihuahuan Desert of central and northern Mexico as well as two localities within the southwestern United States. Little is known about migratory movements and population structure of this speci...
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... The lesser long-nosed bat is a small (~25 g), nectarand fruit-feeding bat whose seasonal movement between roosts largely depends on the availability of flowering columnar cacti and agave species (Figure 1a; Burke et al., 2019;Fleming et al., 1993;Frick et al., 2018;Menchaca et al., 2020;Trejo-Salazar et al., 2015. The species is distributed from the southwestern United States to northern Nicaragua (Cole & Wilson, 2006;Saldaña Tapia et al., 2020), seasonally migrating from southern and western Mexico to the Sonoran Desert in the spring, where they remain through early fall (Cockrum, 1991;Rojas-Martínez et al., 1999;Trejo-Salazar et al., 2023;Wilkinson & Fleming, 1996;Zamora-Mejías et al., 2020). ...
... The species is distributed from the southwestern United States to northern Nicaragua (Cole & Wilson, 2006;Saldaña Tapia et al., 2020), seasonally migrating from southern and western Mexico to the Sonoran Desert in the spring, where they remain through early fall (Cockrum, 1991;Rojas-Martínez et al., 1999;Trejo-Salazar et al., 2023;Wilkinson & Fleming, 1996;Zamora-Mejías et al., 2020). Populations on the Baja California peninsula in Mexico were hypothesized to travel to the Mexican mainland when food resources are limited, but direct movements of individuals have never been observed (Frick et al., 2018). ...
... Long-term monitoring of individual bats has been made possible in the past decade by marking bats with passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags and deploying fixed-point antenna systems (i.e., PIT tag readers) at roost entrances ( Figure 1b). When deployed across multiple sites within a species' range, PIT tag readers can be used to detect nightly and seasonal bat activity (Frick et al., 2018) and document connectivity between sites (Bullen & Reiffer, 2019;Sunga et al., 2021). Through a binational collaboration, we have marked over 4000 individuals with PIT tags since 2013 and equipped the entrances of 12 roosts with PIT tag antennae and readers (Figure 1b; Appendix S1: Section S1, Figure S1, Table S1). ...
... 63 Maternity roost monitoring practices improved by accounting for seasonal movement and using new technology such as infrared videography. 63,81 Mexico delisted L. yerbabuenae in 2013, and the United States removed it from the Endangered Species Act in 2018. 63,81 Officials determined that threats had been reduced or managed, the total population size was stable or increasing across its range, and the species could adapt to some habitat disruption. ...
... 63,81 Mexico delisted L. yerbabuenae in 2013, and the United States removed it from the Endangered Species Act in 2018. 63,81 Officials determined that threats had been reduced or managed, the total population size was stable or increasing across its range, and the species could adapt to some habitat disruption. 63 Ongoing education programs spread public support for protecting bat pollination services. ...
The world's rich diversity of bats supports healthy ecosystems and important ecosystem services. Maintaining healthy biological systems requires prompt identification of threats to biodiversity and immediate action to protect species, which for wide‐ranging bat species that span geopolitical boundaries warrants international coordination. Anthropogenic forces drive the threats to bats throughout North America and the world. We conducted an international expert elicitation to assess the status of 153 bat species in Canada, the United States, and Mexico. We used expert assessment to determine the conservation status, highest impact threats, and recent population trends for these species. We found that 53% of North American bat species have moderate to very high risk of extinction in the next 15 years. The highest impact threats varied with species and country, and four IUCN threat categories had the greatest overall impacts: Climate Change, Problematic Species (including disease), Agriculture, and Energy Production. Experts estimated that 90% of species assessed had decreasing population trends over the past 15 years, demonstrating the need for conservation action. Although the state of North American bats is concerning, we identify threats that can be addressed through internationally collaborative, proactive, and protective actions to support the recovery and resilience of North American bat species.
... We studied the activity patterns of L. yerbabuenae at 3 subterranean roosts in Baja California Sur, Mexico (Fig. 1). These roosts have been monitored since 2015 using passive integrated transponder tags (PIT-tags) with Biomark IS1001 radiofrequency identification (RFID) transceivers attached to 15-m flexible cord antennae (Biomark, Inc., Boise, Idaho) installed at roost entrances (Frick et al. 2018). To examine whether activity patterns of females differed by their reproductive condition, we used the PIT-tag data obtained from 2013 to 2018 at a maternity cave located on Carmen Island (Carmen Cave). ...
... To examine whether activity patterns of females differed by their reproductive condition, we used the PIT-tag data obtained from 2013 to 2018 at a maternity cave located on Carmen Island (Carmen Cave). This roost is occupied only from late March through mid-July by reproductively active females that typically give birth in mid-April (Frick et al. 2018). To assess how activity patterns differ by sex and environmental factors, we used data from 1 maternity and 1 mating roost located in close proximity to each other (<1 km) in the Sierra de las Cacachilas. ...
... Both roosts host females and males throughout the year. Because these 2 roosts are located <1 km from each other and bats switch between the 2 roosts on a nightly basis (Frick et al. 2018), we treated these 2 roosts as a single site, and refer to these as the "Cacachilas Complex" (Fig. 1). Here, bats have been tagged from 2015 to 2018 across different seasons as there are resident and migratory bats present all year-round. ...
Temporal activity patterns of animals can indicate how individuals respond to changing conditions. Gregarious roosting bats provide an opportunity to compare activity patterns among individuals living in the same location to investigate how reproductive status or sex may influence activity budgets. We examined how the activity patterns of the nectarivorous bat Leptonycteris yerbabuenae vary depending on reproductive conditions, sex, and environmental conditions. We analyzed 5 years of individual mark-resighting data using daily detections of L. yerbabuenae marked with passive integrated transponder tags (PIT-tags) at 3 subterranean roosts on the Baja California Peninsula, Mexico. We derived 4 metrics using PIT-tag detections at roost entrances to calculate periods inside the roost and time spent outside the roost (time of emergence, returns to the roost, hours inside the roost, and hours of activity). We found differences among pregnant, lactating, and nonreproductive females for roost returns, hours inside the roost, and hours of activity outside the roost. Lactating females spent the longest time outside the roost, suggesting that the energetic demands of lactation require longer foraging bouts. Contrary to our expectations, lactating females had the fewest returns to the roost during the night, suggesting that lactating females did not shorten foraging bouts to return to nurse pups. Activity patterns differed between females and males and among seasons associated with different food availability. Females had fewer returns during the night and spent more time outside the roost than males. The time of emergence for males was earlier than for females except during the nectar season when most females are reproductively active. Differences in activity patterns among reproductive status, sex, and environmental conditions show how individuals modify behaviors to meet their energetic demands. We demonstrate how mark-resighting data from PIT-tag systems at roost entrances can be used to compare activity patterns of gregarious roosting bats.
... This flight distance exceeds all known distances of other phyllostomids or nectarivores in the world. Examining the distribution of genetic diversity across mainland populations of the L. yerbabuenae bat colonies, Ramírez [92] found two clades, but little geographic structuring, and recently Arteaga et al. [93,94] found the same lack of pattern among peninsular colonies suggesting high levels of gene flow mediated by females. Although there are no direct observations of L. yerbabuenae actually using the midriff islands as stepping stones, or flying across the Gulf to reach the peninsula, there are records of this species flying from Tiburon island to the mainland in foraging bouts of about 30 km [95]. ...
Genetic differentiations and phylogeographical patterns are controlled by the interplay between spatial isolation and gene flow. To assess the extent of gene flow across an oceanic barrier, we explored the effect of the separation of the peninsula of Baja California on the evolution of mainland and peninsular populations of the long-lived columnar cactus Stenocereus thurberi. We analyzed twelve populations throughout the OPC distribution range to assess genetic diversity and structure using chloroplast DNA sequences. Genetic diversity was higher (Hd = 0.81), and genetic structure was lower (GST = 0.143) in mainland populations vs peninsular populations (Hd = 0.71, GST = 0.358 respectively). Genetic diversity was negatively associated with elevation but positively with rainfall. Two mainland and one peninsular ancestral haplotypes were reconstructed. Peninsular populations were as isolated among them as with mainland populations. Peninsular haplotypes formed a group with one mainland coastal population, and populations across the gulf shared common haplotypes giving support to regular gene flow across the Gulf. Gene flow is likely mediated by bats, the main pollinators and seed dispersers. Niche modeling suggests that during the Last Glacial Maximum (c. 130 ka), OPC populations shrank to southern locations. Currently, Stenocereus thurberi populations are expanding, and the species is under population divergence despite ongoing gene flow. Ancestral populations are located on the mainland and although vicariant peninsular populations cannot be ruled out, they are likely the result of gene flow across the seemingly formidable barrier of the Gulf of California. Still, unique haplotypes occur in the peninsula and the mainland, and peninsular populations are more structured than those on the mainland.
... Animal seasonality is thought to be a response to changes in food availability, and is thus driven by energetic considerations, with temperature and photoperiod as likely initiating cues (Meyer et al., 2016;Williams et al., 2014). Although seasonality of bats in temperate regions is well-documented (Loumassine et al., 2020), only a few studies have quantified the seasonal dynamics of bat assemblages in tropical arid landscapes (Frick et al., 2018), and South Asian bats as a whole are very poorly studied. The extreme temperatures and water scarcity in areas such as the Thar desert renders them good places to study and monitor these seasonal movements. ...
Arid and semiarid environments of the world are characterized by extreme environmental changes that affect the availability of scarce, patchily distributed resources such as water. In response to these changes, animals migrate or partition resources to minimize competition, resulting in temporal patterns within assemblages across multiple scales. Here, we demonstrate that the winter dry season bat assemblage in a semiarid grassland of northwestern India exhibits seasonal changes and temporal avoidance between coexisting species. Using a passive acoustic monitoring framework to quantify activity patterns at different points in the season, we show that members of this assemblage (Rhinolophus lepidus and Tadarida aegyptiaca) exhibit seasonal differences in activity, being more frequently detected in the early and late parts of the dry season, respectively. Other species (Pipistrellus tenuis and Scotophilus heathii) do not exhibit seasonal changes in activity, but structure diel activity patterns, minimizing temporal overlap (and thus competition) at water bodies. These data, some of the first on bats from this region, demonstrate the complex temporal patterns structuring bat assemblages in arid and semiarid biomes. Our results hold promise both in understanding bat behavioral ecology and in long-term monitoring efforts.
... Due to current technology limitations, most longnosed bat movements are inferred from direct observations, passive integrated transponder (PIT) tag detections (Frick et al. 2018), and genetic studies (Wilkinson and Fleming 1996;Menchaca et al. 2020), which led to the discovery that only some populations of the lesser long-nosed bat (Leptonycteris yerbabuenae) migrate. Of the populations dwelling in Mexico, some females are resident to central and southern Mexico, where they form maternity roosts in the winter. ...
... Males with developed dorsal patches (i. e., bare dorsal skin with sticky fur; Frick et al. 2018) have larger testes (Rincón-Vargas et al. 2013), and may have lower ectoparasite loads as noted by studies of L. curasoae (Muñoz-Romo and Kunz 2009;Muñoz-Romo et al. 2011b). Together, this suggests that dorsal patches may influence female mate choice; however, other potential explanations have not yet been evaluated. ...
... While L. yerbabuenae was originally classified as endangered at the northern extent of its range in the late 1980s (Cole and Wilson 2006), the species was removed from the Endangered Species List in the United States in 2018, following its removal from threatened status in México in 2013 (Frick et al. 2018). It is one of three species of nectar-feeding bats-along with the Mexican long-nosed bat (Leptonycteris nivalis) and the Mexican long-tongued bat (Choeronycteris mexicana)-that migrate seasonally from Mexico to the southwestern United States along corridors of ephemeral flowers of cacti and Agave spp. ...
The lesser long-nosed bat (Leptonycteris yerbabuenae) is a partially migratory, nectarivorous species that exhibits reproductive asynchrony across its range. Both migratory and resident populations of sexually active males of L. yerbabuenae may form an odoriferous dorsal patch during their mating season. This is created by smearing saliva, urogenital fluids, and anal secretions over the interscapular dorsal region with their feet. Dorsal patches are believed to influence female mate choice. We synthesized the sightings of male dorsal patches across the spe-cies' range, including gathering new observations of male L. yerbabuenae with dorsal patches captured at the northern extent of their range and citing previously unreported observations that we obtained by contacting other researchers. We also conducted a literature review to include all previously documented records of male L. yerbabuenae presenting dorsal patches. We document the first observations of male L. yerbabuenae with dorsal patches in the southwestern United States. In the Big Hatchet Mountains in New Mexico, we captured 1 male with a developed dorsal patch (i. e., bare dorsal skin with sticky fur) on 25 July 2019 and two others on the night of 13 August 2019. New observations of males with developed dorsal patches were obtained from Hilltop Mine in Arizona (June 2006 or 2007) and at a hummingbird feeder at a residence near the Hilltop Mine (July 2013). A male with a recovering dorsal patch (i. e., bare dorsal skin with regenerating fur) was also captured in a roost near Patagonia, Arizona, in late August 2008 and at a hummingbird feeder at a residence near Silver City, New Mexico (September 2021). All previously published records of males with dorsal patches occurred in roosts in Mexico during known mating seasons. These new observations suggest that L. yerbabuenae may breed in New Mexico and Arizona between June and August, but follow-up studies are needed to confirm this behavior. Much of the reproductive biology of this important pollinator remains unknown. Therefore, identifying regions where males present dorsal patches may not only assist in locating and protecting mating roosts, but would also further our understanding of the population ecology of this migratory species.
... En México, es una especie que migra latitudinalmente a lo largo de la costa del Pacífico mexicano desde el noroeste de México y el suroeste de Estados Unidos. Esta migración está relacionada con la temporada de floración y fructificación de las plantas columnares (Valiente-Banuet, 2002;Frick et al., 2018) que producen flores quiropterófilas como Carnegiea gigantea, Pachycereus pringlei y Stenocereus thurberi (Valiente-Banuet, 2002). Se sabe que esta especie puede moverse más de 50 km en una noche hacia el área de forrajeo y mantener una actividad de hasta 7.5 horas y siempre regresan a los mismos parches de cactus debido al uso del aprendizaje reforzado (Egert-Berg et al., 2018;Goldshtein et al., 2020). ...
... Aunque la ecología estacional de la especie y el estado de la población se han estudiado ampliamente en el centro de México, se sabe poco sobre su distribución en el noroeste del país (Frick et al., 2018). En el Estado de Sinaloa, los estudios sobre poblaciones de murciélagos son escasos (Almazán-Catalán et al., 2015). ...
... States. This migration is linked to the flowering and fruiting season of columnar plants (Valiente-Banuet, 2002;Frick et al., 2018) that produce chiropterophilic flowers including Carnegiea gigantea, P. pringlei and S. thurberi (Valiente-Banuet, 2002). It is known that this species can move more than 50 km in one night towards the foraging area and maintain an activity of up to 7.5 hours and they always return to the same cactus patches due to the use of reinforcement learning (Egert-Berg et al., 2018;Goldshtein et al., 2020). ...
In Mexico, studies on chiropters have reported the presence of eight families and a total of 138 species, of which seven families and 55 species are reported for the state of Sinaloa. However, the Sierra de Navachiste, México is a natural protected area of state jurisdiction registered as an area subject to Ecological Conservation. studies on bat populations in this area are scarce or nonexistent, resulting in their environmental needs, current threats and the impact they have at population level being unknown. Despite finding a low species richness (five species), caught two migratory species in Sierra de Navachiste: Mormoops megalophylla and Leptonycteris yerbabuenae. This last bat is included on the IUCN red list (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) as a "vulnerable" species, and in Mexico it is a "threatened" species. This bat is considered a key species within the ecosystem due to being the pollinator of the dominant columnar cacti as well as a distributor of its seeds though fruit consumption. This activity promotes the dispersal of these plants and maintains the structure and health of the ecosystem. Due to the importance of the Sierra Navachiste as a refuge for at least five bat species, including two migratory and one protected species, it is necessary to establish a management plan in order to protect the chiroptera community that depends on it.
... While two of the three nectarivorous species in our Western North America study area (L. nivalis and L. yerbabuenae ) are both migratory and therefore capable of broad-scale movements to new habitats, any range expansion would be reliant on a similar expansion of their food plants (Frick et al., 2018). At present, L. nivalis is classified as 'Endangered' by the IUCN due to its continued population decline due to the loss of roosting and foraging habitat (Gómez-Ruiz & Lacher, 2017). ...
Species occupying semi-arid and dry regions around the globe face an uncertain future due to increases in the frequency and severity of droughts. In this study we modelled the potential effect of climate change on bat communities within two high-drought risk regions of the world and assessed the magnitude and direction of the predicted shifts in climatic suitability, locating climate change refugia and identifying species at greatest risk of population declines. To do this, we compared climate suitability models for 43 species using three global climate models and three emissions scenarios for current (1950-2000) and future (2061-2080) climates within two regions where droughts are predicted to increase, the Western Palaearctic and Western North America. Our models predicted an overall reduction in bat richness with future climates. Areas projected to support high species richness in the current climate coincided with greatest predicted species loss and greatest future drought risk. For species with the potential to extend their range, high velocity range shifts would be required to keep pace with these changes, particularly in the Western Palaearctic, where additional barriers to movement include seas and high human population density areas. Predicted refugial zones were limited and occurred in similar areas across continents (montane and high latitude with some coastal areas). The area of climate suitability was predicted to contract for around half of study species, with nine identified as species of conservation concern due to low overlap between current and future modelled ranges. The best-case scenario for bat diversity in semi-arid and dry regions in the future is likely to be reduced species richness, with many species facing rapid range expansion over challenging landscapes to access climatically suitable areas. Conservation of bats in high drought risk regions will likely depend on protection of identified refugia and networks of water sources, as well as global measures to protect biodiversity and human wellbeing, such as reduction in global carbon emissions.
... Thus, populations of long-nosed bats in Honduras are probably resident; there are shelters where they reproduce, food resources that they seek at night, and altitudinal migration can be expected. Although this species has been widely studied in Mexico and the southern United States (Frick et al. 2018), its behavior in Honduras is practically unknown. Studies regarding their food, shelter, and distribution in the country are needed. ...
The lesser long-nosed bat ( Leptonycteris yerbabuenae Martínez & Villa-R, 1940) is a specialized nectar feeding species found from southern USA to Nicaragua in Central America, mostly in dry forest. We sampled bats using mist nets and Anabat detectors, and also looked for them at refuges and other sites in Honduras from 2011 to 2016. The lesser long-nosed bat is known in Honduras from only two localities in the southern dry forests below 100 m elevation, and there are no recent records of this species in the country. Our objective is to report new records on distribution and habitat of the lesser long-nosed bat in Honduras. We found eight lesser long-nosed bats at Cerro de Hula, Francisco Morazán department in 2012, and 10 at La Anonilla, Choluteca department, southern Honduras in 2015. Based on these 18 individuals of the lesser long-nosed bat, we report two new localities in Honduras, an altitude record, and the use of another habitat other than the dry forest. The highest point registered was at 1710 m a.s.l. in pastureland with forest remnants in an area heavily impacted by human activities. The new localities are found in the Subtropical Moist Forest. Populations of long-nosed bats in Honduras are probably resident and may include altitudinal movements. Although this species has been described widely in North America, its behavior in Honduras is practically unknown. It is a key species for the tequila and mezcal industry, but its range extends beyond the tequila production area, where it maintains a key role as a pollinator and link between habitats. As a result, research and conservation efforts should be an international goal.
... Interestingly, males have also been observed in the north of Mexico in Sonora (Calva O. 2018, pers. comm.) and in the Baja California Peninsula during the summer Frick et al., 2018), and yearlong using hummingbird feeders near Tucson, USA (US Fish and Wildlife Service, 2016). This permanent availability of resources could be impacting the migratory/dispersing behaviour of L. yerbabuenae by discouraging movement to breeding sites during the autumn and winter and will undoubtedly have consequences in the population structure of the species in the long term. ...
The tequila bat (Leptonycteris yerbabuenae) has been the focus of intense research over the last 20 years. Its close relationship to economically important plants used in the production of tequila and mezcal has raised awareness of its importance as both a keystone mutualist and a mobile link between habitats. The study of its migratory habits has shed light on patterns of movement and routes that animals follow, and how these movements affect the genetic composition of its populations. Delimiting the boundaries of breeding populations is of great importance for conservation, however, determining these boundaries has been difficult for L. yerbabuenae. Understanding the demographic history of the species could provide additional insight into current differences of its migratory behaviour and reproductive asynchrony. Here, we report evidence of historical matrilineal structure by comparing partial sequences of mtDNA cytochrome b (bp 306) and Control Region (497 bp) and inferred patterns of differentiation across the distribution of L. yerbabuenae in Mexico. Our population-based statistical analysis suggests panmixia among colonies with low genetic differentiation between north-western and south-eastern colonies. Neutrality tests of the Control Region indicate the presence of two divergent mitochondrial lineages in the south-east and the north-west of Mexico. Our results corroborate recent population expansion events, possibly due to the influence of physical barriers to migration and historical population demography. We recognize one single population but two Conservation Units (CUs) based on differences in reproductive phenology, migratory behaviour and the evidence of two matrilineal lineages as found in this study. We recommend the use of large-scale genomic datasets to better delimit fine-scale population structure in the future.
