Diet of wrinkle-lipped free-tailed bat (Tadarida plicata Buchannan, 1800) in central Thailand: insectivorous bats potentially act as biological pest control agents

Reproductive Ecology of Wrinkle-Lipped Free-Tailed Bats Chaerephon plicatus (Buchannan, 1800) in Relation to Guano Production in Cambodia

“…As this matches the timing of births reported at other C. plicatus colonies in north-western and southern Cambodia (sites #3, #4 and #12, Table 1, Figure 1), our findings are likely to be applicable nationwide. This is supported by the fact that they also match the reproductive phenology of the species in south-central Thailand [16,18], and central and coastal Myanmar [17]. However, while growing evidence suggests that seasonally monoestrous insectivorous cave bats exhibit reproductive synchrony across Southeast Asia, even in areas with limited seasonality in rainfall [34], it remains unclear whether the same might be true for a species with two annual breeding cycles such as C. plicatus.…”

“…Lastly, we quantified guano harvests at the largest known and most closely Because cave-roosting bats are vulnerable to human disturbance during critical reproductive periods (late pregnancy, lactation and weaning) [4], documentation of these periods has clear conservation relevance [13]. Although a wide variety of reproductive patterns have been described for molossid bats [14], the similar climate and monsoon seasons of Thailand and Myanmar [15] led us predict that reproductive phenology of C. plicatus in Cambodia would match patterns documented in these countries [16][17][18]. Due to the influence of climate and specifically rainfall on insect biomass and hence food availability for insectivorous bats [14,19,20], we further hypothesized that differences in the latter between the dry and wet seasons in Cambodia would be reflected in seasonal differences in body condition and consequently permit identification of periods when the species may be subject to energetic stress.…”

Conservation Ecology of Cave Bats

“…This is particularly true in Asia, where bat guano is a major source of fertilizer whose sale and use features prominently in many local economies (Leh and Hall 1996;Leelapaibul et al 2005;Aye 2006). This has resulted in overharvesting and disturbance of cave roosting bats (Bumrungsri et al 2013), exacerbated by cave modifications made to assist guano extraction (Elliot 1994).…”

“…The proportion of such pests in their faeces allows the economic value of such predation to be estimated, which includes a reduction in the number of costly pesticide applications required (Cleveland et al 2006). In Thailand, the wrinkle-lipped free-tailed bat (Chaerephon plicatus) consumes economically significant amounts of whitebacked planthoppers (Sogatella furcifera) which are major pests of rice crops (Leelapaibul et al 2005;Wanger et al 2014). The dawn bat (Eonycteris spelaea) which forms colonies of up to 20,000 individuals in SE Asian caves (Medway 1958) is the primary pollinator of durian (Durio zibethinus), a high value fruit (Bumrungsri et al 2009) and a commonly eaten tree bean (Parkia speciosa) (Bumrungsri et al 2008), alongside other economically important plant species (Bumrungsri et al 2013).…”

Cave-dwelling bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) and conservation concerns in South central Mindanao, Philippines

“…While P. javanicus is common in urban and agricultural areas, and in secondary and primary lowland and montane forest, it is uncommon in mossy forest, from sea level to 1750m (Heaney et al 1998). The presence of many insectivorous bats in Pisan caves suggest they may play a vital role in the area as major predators of nocturnal insects and have the potential to act as biological pest control agents in farmlands, where they can consume insects up to 30-100 % of their body weight each night (Leelapaibul et al 2005). The consumption of pest insects by bats contributes to the reduction of insecticides used in farm crops (Cleveland et al 2006).…”