New records of bats (Chiroptera) from Santa Cruz province (Argentina) and the southernmost record of Lasiurus varius (Poeppig, 1835) for Argentina

Abstract

Here, we report new records for the distribution in Argentina of 3 bat species from the family Vespertilionidae: Lasiurus varius (Poeppig, 1835), Histiotus magellanicus (Philippi, 1866), and Myotis chiloensis (Waterhouse, 1838). The range of L. varius is extended by more than 800 km south of the previous known limit, representing the southernmost known occurrence for the species in Argentina. The new information for M. chiloensis fills a previous existing gap between records known from Chubut and Tierra del Fuego. Similarly, the new record of H. magellanicus also completes its known distribution in the Santa Cruz province. Key wordsPatagonia; Santa Cruz; Vespertilionidae.

Patagonian bats: new size limits, southernmost localities and updated distribution for Lasiurus villosissimus and Myotis dinellii (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae)

“…In turn, roost selection can be determined by the physiological demands of the adults or young (Findley 1993). Some studies in Patagonia presented new limits of distribution for bats (Koopman 1982, Dabbene 1902, Barquez et al 2013, Udrizar Sauthier et al 2013, Díaz et al 2017), but lacking the focus of the importance of austral limits of distribution. Here, we extend the latitudinal range of Lasiurus villosissimus.…”

“…Vespertilionids in Patagonia are represented by seven species in three genera: Histiotus Gervais 1856, Lasiurus Gray 1831 and Myotis Kaup 1829. However, new records (Giménez 2010, Giménez et al 2012, Barquez et al 2013, Díaz et al 2017) and taxonomic revisions (Novaes et al 2018a,b) are constantly modifying the number of recorded species, and changing the austral limits of their distribution.…”

Lasiurus varius (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae)

“…In Chile, L. varius was reported from Ovalle, Coquimbo (30°34′S) to Tierra del Fuego (54°7′S) (Koopman 1967;Rau and Yañez 1979;Tamayo and Pérez D'Angello 1979; Rodríguez-San Pedro and Allendes 2016). In Argentina, it is distributed from Chos Malal, Neuquén Province (37°22′S), south to Los Glaciares National Park, Santa Cruz Province (50°6′S- Barquez 1987;Mares et al 1995;Barquez et al 2013;Udrizar Sauthier et al 2013;Díaz et al 2017). L. varius is distributed in the forests and open steppe areas of the Patagonia (Barquez et al 1999(Barquez et al , 2013Udrizar Sauthier et al 2013).…”

“…Rau and Yañez (1979) mentioned specimens from Parque Nacional "Torres de Paine" (Ultima Esperanza Province, XII Region) roosting in branches of a fruit tree; a specimen was captured as it roosted with two other bats of the same species, in a small artificial conifer forest near a road in Chile, about 30 m from the coast (Tamayo and Pérez D'Angello 1979). Although considered L. varius as solitary, in National Park Los Glaciares, Argentina, a group of four individuals was reported from Santa Cruz Province roosting in an apple tree (Malus domestica Rosaceae- Díaz et al 2017). Giménez and Giannini (2011) state that in Argentina L. varius is endemic to the Patagonian temperate rainforest and adjacent areas of the Patagonian steppe, and allopatric with the other three species of the genus (the southern yellow bat L. ega, L.…”

“…However, in Chile this species was recorded to be sympatry with L. villosissimus at several localities (Galaz et al 2009;Rodríguez-San Pedro and Simonetti 2013b). In Argentina, L. varius was collected with the southern big-eared brown bat Histiotus magellanicus and the Chilean myotis Myotis chiloensis in an area of Patagonian forest dominated by Nothofagus pumilio, N. betuloides, and Drymis winteri (Díaz et al 2017). In Chile, it is associated with sclerophyllous forests in Central Chile; Valdivian temperate forests elsewhere, where it is often located in tree branches and hollow trunks, and in pine or eucalyptus plantations, or along vegetation edges, but also within the interior of the habitats (Rodríguez-San Pedro and Simonetti 2013b; .…”