Frequent or scarce? Damage to flight–enabling body parts in bats (Chiroptera)

Abstract

Bat wings are characterized by high endurance, and these mammals have developed a number of adaptations that protect them from falling into obstacles and potential injuries. However, in bat populations, there are individuals with visible fresh or healed injuries to the flight–enabling body parts. The aim of this research was to determine the differences in the occurrence of wing membrane damages among species of bats that differ in ecology and behavior. The study was conducted in southern and western Poland in the years 2000–2016 and included 3,525 individuals of six species: lesser horseshoe bat Rhinolopus hipposideros , Daubenton’s bat Myotis daubentonii , Natterer’s bat Myotis nattereri , greater mouse–eared bat Myotis myotis , western barbastelle Barbastella barbastellus , and brown long–eared bat Plecotus auritus . In all, 2.9% of the bats studied showed damage to the flight–enabling body parts. Natterer’s bat was the species with the highest number of injured individuals (21.74%). The lowest number of injured individuals (0.3%) was found in the brown long–eared bat. The most frequently observed type of damage was loss of an edge of the wing membrane (29.3%). The bat species studied differed significantly in the occurrence and location of flight enabling body parts damages. Certain behavioral and ecological factors like foraging mode, foraging habitats and habitat types of bat species determine the number of wing and tail membrane damages.

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“…Chromatic disorders occur when abnormal pigmentation causes anomalous colouration of cells, which can occur on any part of the body (Rook et al 1998). This phenomena has been reported in a wide variety of mammal groups such as Rodentia (Jung & Slough 2012, Brito & Valdivieso-Bermeo 2016, Otariidae (Acevedo & Aguayo 2008, Wege et al 2015, Cetacea (Koper et al 2017) and Chiroptera (Cichocki et al 2017, Zortéa & Cristina Silva 2017, Hernández-Aguilar & Santos-Moreno 2018.…”

Seasonal challenges of tropical bats in temperate zones

“…A cold winter is known to induce cold stress in a variety of other mammals in terms of growth and production 20 , including a reduction in birth weight and enhanced pre-weaning mortality 21 , lower immunity abilities 22 , 23 , and a reduction in basic activity at the cellular level 24 . Humans too exhibit higher mortality in the wintertime 25 .…”