Sebocytes are specialized epithelial cells that rupture to secrete sebaceous lipids (sebum) across the mammalian integument. Sebum protects the integument from UV radiation, and maintains host microbial communities among other functions. Native glandular sebum is composed primarily of triacylglycerides (TAG) and wax esters (WE). Upon secretion (mature sebum), these lipids combine with minor cellular membrane components comprising total surface lipids. TAG and WE are further cleaved to smaller molecules through oxidation or host enzymatic digestion, resulting in a complex mixture of glycerolipids (e.g., TAG), sterols, unesterified fatty acids (FFA), WE, cholesteryl esters, and squalene comprising surface lipid. We are interested if fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) profiling of bat surface lipid could predict species specificity to the cutaneous fungal disease, white nose syndrome (WNS). We collected sebaceous secretions from 13 bat spp. using Sebutape(®) and converted them to FAME with an acid catalyzed transesterification. We found that Sebutape(®) adhesive patches removed ~6× more total lipid than Sebutape(®) indicator strips. Juvenile eastern red bats (Lasiurus borealis) had significantly higher 18:1 than adults, but 14:0, 16:1, and 20:0 were higher in adults. FAME profiles among several bat species were similar. We concluded that bat surface lipid FAME profiling does not provide a robust model predicting species susceptibility to WNS. However, these results provide baseline data that can be used for lipid roles in future ecological studies, such as life history, diet, or migration.

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Gray bats (Myotis grisescens) were listed as endangered in 1976 because of population declines resulting from cave disturbance. The Gray Bat Recovery Plan identified the need to understand habitat use by this species. Yet, this need has never been adequately addressed, partly because gray bats are a highly mobile species with large home ranges, making ground-based tracking methods problematic. The objective of this study was to gather information on the foraging behavior of gray bats using aerial telemetry. We radiotracked 112 reproductive female gray bats from 5 maternity colonies in Arkansas from a fixed-winged aircraft, in June-July of 2014 and 2015. We used fixed-kernel density to estimate the home range used by each colony and each individual. We performed a compositional analysis to determine land cover types selected by gray bats. Aerial telemetry was successful with !15 independent locations gathered for 42 individuals and an error of approximately 400 m. Mean 95% individual home range was larger in 2014 (362.2 AE 24.9 [SE] km 2 ) than in 2015 (57.9 AE 8.6 km 2 ). Female gray bats traveled and foraged over water proportionally more than expected based on availability. Our results show that aerial telemetry is suitable to track bat movements, and given its large home range size, management strategies for gray bats should extend beyond protecting roost sites to include waterways and riparian areas. Ó 2017 The Wildlife Society.

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