Türkiye’nin Kuzeybatısından Plecotus auritus (Linnaeus, 1758)’a Ait Yeni Bir Yayılış Kaydı ve Bazı Biyoekolojik Özellikleri (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae)

Abstract

Species of the genus Plecotus, which have distinctive morphology with their long ears, are common in the Palearctic region. Its distribution area in Türkiye is seen as fragmented. In the present study, a new distribution record for Plecotus auritus (Linnaeus, 1758) from Bolu province is given. External characteristics, fur coloration, skull morphology, morphometric measurements, and some ecological characteristics of the specimen were also recorded. The greatest length of skull, condylobasal length, zygomatic breadth, skull height, and largest diameter of tympanic bulla values were measured as high when compared to the data of Plecotus auritus from Türkiye and Central Europe. It is noted that the species' diet includes Galleria mellonella from the order Lepidoptera. Additionally, call length (ms) (1.4- 4.9 mean= 3.4), max. frequency (kHz) (28.8-62.4 mean= 39.9), min. frequency (kHz) (16.8-36.4 mean= 24.3), and peak frequency (kHz) (22.8-35.6 mean= 28.7) acoustic parameters of Plecotus auritus were determined.