The Use of Commercial Fruits as Attraction Agents May Increase the Seed Dispersal by Bats to Degraded Areas in Southern Mexico

Abstract

Fruit-eating bats play a fundamental role in animal seed dispersal and should be considered key actors in tropical forest restoration. We explored the use of commercial fruits as attractants for bats to increase seed dispersal to areas affected by forest fires in southern Mexico. We captured bats and collected seeds from feces and seed rain at perturbed sample sites where mature bananas and mangos were placed, and from non-treated control sites. Bat and bat-dispersed plant species richness and abundance were analyzed, and the importance of each bat species as a disperser was evaluated. Additionally, germination boxes were set up to evaluate the germination of seeds found in bat feces. We captured 724 individuals of 16 frugivorous bat species, 15 spp in treated and 12 spp in control sites. Sowell's Short-tailed bat, Toltec Fruit-eating bat and the Western Long-tongued bat showed higher abundances in treated sites, suggesting that these three species were attracted by fruits. The most important disperser was the Sowell's Short-tailed bat, followed by the Jamaican Fruit-eating and Toltec Fruit-eating bat. A greater proportion of pioneer species and trees, followed by shrubs, were found in the overall bat diet. The germination percentage was > 50%, suggesting that the use of fruits to attract bats can be a feasible wildlife management activity to encourage the succession process. We recommend further studies to test and improve this activity.Key words: Chiapas, Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae, seed dispersal and germination, tropical forest restoration, wildlife management. ResumenLos murciélagos frugívoros juegan un papel fundamental en la dispersión zoocórica, por lo que deben ser considerados actores clave en la restauración de selvas tropicales. Exploramos el uso de frutas comerciales como atrayentes de murciélagos para incrementar la dispersión de semillas hacia áreas afectadas por incendios forestales en el sur de México. Capturamos murciélagos, colectamos semillas de sus heces y la lluvia de semillas en sitios perturbados con tratamiento donde colocamos plátanos y mangos maduros, así como en sitios de control sin tratamiento. Se analizó la riqueza y abundancia de las especies de murciélagos y las de las plantas dispersadas, y la importancia de cada especie de murciélago como dispersor. Además, se establecieron charolas de germinación para evaluar la germinación de semillas encontradas en las heces de murciélagos. Capturamos 724 individuos de 16 especies de murciélagos frugívoros, 15 spp en los sitios de tratamiento y 12 spp en sitios de control. El murciélago frugívoro de cola corta sedosa (Carollia sowelli), el murciélago frutero tolteca (Artibeus toltecus) y el murciélago lengüetón de Xiutepec (Glossophaga morenoi) mostraron mayores abundancias en los sitios con tratamiento, lo cual sugiere que estas tres especies fueron atraídas por las frutas. El dispersor más importante fue C. sowelli, seguido por A. jamaicensis (murciélago frugívoro de Jamaica) y A. toltecus. En la dieta de los murciélagos capturados...

Dieta de murciélagos frugívoros y su efecto sobre la germinación de dos especies en el Área Natural Única Los Estoraques, Norte de Santander, Colombia

“…Al ser C. brevicauda el mejor dispersor, debido a la magnitud con la cual transporta semillas de un sitio a otro facilitando su disposición en sitios donde se pueden establecer, la especie es clave en el área de estudio y podría tener un papel central en los procesos de restauración mediante la utilización de refugios o cebaderos artificiales, aumentando la lluvia de semillas en estos lugares (Galindo-González 1998, Kelm et al 2008, Preciado-Benítez et al 2015. Ya que ha sido bien documentado en diferentes trabajos que la dieta de los murciélagos se ve representada en mayor proporción por especies pioneras como lo son las especies de los géneros Piper y Vismia (Oria y Machado 2007, Saldaña-Vázquez 2014, Zavala-Calloapaza 2018, esta especie debería ser considerada clave para los procesos de enriquecimiento en el área, en especial en las zonas que han sido perturbadas por factores como ganadería y agricultura (Suárez et al 2016).…”

Alluring restoration strategies to attract seed‐dispersing animals need more rigorous testing

“…(2020), as well as many prior studies (e.g. Bianconi et al., 2012; Kelm et al., 2008; Preciado‐Benítez et al., 2015), is that they do not provide evidence that fruit feeders or other animal attractants ‘assist restoration or regeneration’, as they claim. As we have discussed in detail previously (Reid & Holl, 2013), demonstrating that restoration strategies attract animals into restoration sites and disperse seeds is not sufficient evidence that these strategies actually accelerate vegetation recovery, due to the many other potential barriers to seedling establishment once the seeds arrive.…”

Genetic Diversity of Tropical Bats and Its Relationship With Ecological Role in a Tropical Semievergreen Rain Forest in El Ocote Biosphere Reserve, Chiapas, Mexico

“…Two sampling sites were established; in each locality, bats were sampled over six consecutive nights with similar weather conditions and lunar phase, from January 2015 to September 2015 (4 Localities × 2 Sampling Sites × 6 Nights). In each sampling site, four mist nets (12 m × 2.5 m, 6 m × 2.5 m) were placed between the vegetation and near water bodies, at an average height of 2 m. In relatively open areas, nets were placed at 10 m height (Cosson et al., 1999; Preciado-Benítez et al., 2015). All nets remained open after sunset for seven hours (6p.m.–1a.m.).…”

“…However, their genetic diversity has not been explored. The importance of bat species richness (Espinoza et al., 1999; Hernández-Mijangos, Gálvez-Mejía, Díaz-Negrete, & Cruz-Durante, 2008; Navarrete et al., 1996; Riechers, 2004, 2009) and the role of bats in the recovery of disturbed areas (Preciado-Benítez, Gómez, Navarrete-Gutiérrez, & Horváth, 2015) have been recognized to some extent. The current lack of information coupled with the continued habitat loss and fragmentation in El Ocote (Flamenco-Sandoval, Martínez, & Masera, 2007) call for the need to conduct research on this taxonomic group characterized by a high functional diversity.…”