Roost Characteristics and Clustering Behavior of Western Red Bats (Lasiurus blossevillii) in Southwestern New Mexico

Multi-scale assessment of roost selection by ‘ōpe‘ape‘a, the Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus semotus)

“…Moreover, ‘ōpe‘ape‘a likely evolved with sparse canopy trees such as ‘ōhi‘a ( Metrosideros polymorpha ) [ 51 ] from their first arrival on the Hawaiian archipelago approximately 1.3 Ma [ 6 ]. Perches with sparse canopy cover were well represented in our data, and their use might also be a function of low roost fidelity common to other foliage-roosting species (e.g., [ 16 , 26 , 52 ]). Data on roost fidelity indicate that transient roosts typically occurred in sparse vegetation that may provide little, other than temporary (<24 hrs) resting places [ 53 ].…”

“…However, although bats may avoid certain tree attributes and species, the wide diversity of trees used as roosts by ‘ōpe‘ape‘a during this study indicate that they are flexible in their choice of tree species–a finding consistent with observations for other species of Lasiurus . For example, Andersen and Geluso [ 26 ] found no apparent selection for tree species by western red bats ( Lasiurus blossevilli ), and instead suggest that roost selection was driven by foliage density. Likewise, Perry and Thill [ 66 ] recorded coniferous and deciduous roost tree use by Lasiurus cinereus at a ratio equivalent to their proportional representation in the landscape.…”

“…Tree canopy cover was generally more open at roosts used by ‘ōpe‘ape‘a than at randomly available trees, a result similar to observations of Lasiurus cinereus [ 23 ] and other tree-roosting bats in North America [ 16 ]. Selection of relatively open canopied trees also extended to the use of roosts situated at the edge of open areas and within stands composed of dispersed trees, a preference likewise apparent in Lasiurus cinereus [ 63 ] and Lasiurus blossevilli [ 26 ]. As with the preference for relatively tall or emergent trees, selection for open structured trees and stands may ease roost access by providing gaps or flyways [ 70 ], or simply provide nearby forest-edge habitat favored by foraging insectivorous bats such as Lasiurus cinereus [ 71 ].…”

“…However, because little is known about 'ōpe'ape'a roost ecology and considerable effort is needed to capture and track bats to roost locations, we examined resource selection at multiple spatial scales-perch location within a roost tree, roost tree, and forest stand. For roost selection models, we used a suite of roost habitat attributes common to foliage-roosting bats (e.g., [22][23][24][25][26][27]). We hypothesized that several factors, operating at different spatial scales, would influence day-roost selection.…”