Journal ArticleDOI
Ecosystem services provided by bats
Thomas H. Kunz,Elizabeth Braun de Torrez,Dana Marie Bauer,Tatyana A. Lobova,Theodore H. Fleming +4 more
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TLDR
Information on the ecological and economic value of ecosystem services provided by bats can be used to inform decisions regarding where and when to protect or restore bat populations and associated habitats, as well as to improve public perception of bats.Abstract:
Ecosystem services are the benefits obtained from the environment that increase human well-being. Economic valuation is conducted by measuring the human welfare gains or losses that result from changes in the provision of ecosystem services. Bats have long been postulated to play important roles in arthropod suppression, seed dispersal, and pollination; however, only recently have these ecosystem services begun to be thoroughly evaluated. Here, we review the available literature on the ecological and economic impact of ecosystem services provided by bats. We describe dietary preferences, foraging behaviors, adaptations, and phylogenetic histories of insectivorous, frugivorous, and nectarivorous bats worldwide in the context of their respective ecosystem services. For each trophic ensemble, we discuss the consequences of these ecological interactions on both natural and agricultural systems. Throughout this review, we highlight the research needed to fully determine the ecosystem services in question. Finally, we provide a comprehensive overview of economic valuation of ecosystem services. Unfortunately, few studies estimating the economic value of ecosystem services provided by bats have been conducted to date; however, we outline a framework that could be used in future studies to more fully address this question. Consumptive goods provided by bats, such as food and guano, are often exchanged in markets where the market price indicates an economic value. Nonmarket valuation methods can be used to estimate the economic value of nonconsumptive services, including inputs to agricultural production and recreational activities. Information on the ecological and economic value of ecosystem services provided by bats can be used to inform decisions regarding where and when to protect or restore bat populations and associated habitats, as well as to improve public perception of bats.read more
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Examination of fungal diversity present on Mexican free-tailed bats, Tadarida brasiliensis mexicana, in Colorado.
TL;DR: A summer population of Tadarida brasiliensis mexicana in south-central Colorado is surveyed to gain an initial characterization of the resident mycobiome (i.e., fungal biota) present on their body surfaces and found seasonal differences in fungal community composition.
Journal ArticleDOI
Activity of Aerial Insectivorous Bats in Two Rice Fields in the Northwestern Llanos of Venezuela
Yara Azofeifa,Sergio Estrada-Villegas,Sergio Estrada-Villegas,Jesús Mavárez,Jesús Mavárez,Jafet M. Nassar +5 more
TL;DR: The results suggest that availability of abundant feeding areas to AIB, provided by the rice fields, together with presence of artificial and natural roosts to these bats, could ensure year-round permanence of a rich ensemble of AIB in the rice field-forest landscape in the northwestern Llanos of Venezuela.
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Anatomy and histology of the heart in Egyptian fruit bat (Rossetus aegyptiacus)
TL;DR: According to these results, heart in this species is similar to the other mammals and observed variation, duo to the high metabolism and energy requirements for flight.
Journal ArticleDOI
Management efficacy in a metapopulation model of white‐nose syndrome
Junyan Duan,Mykhaylo M. Malakhov,Jordan J. Pellett,Ishan S. Phadke,Jackson Barber,Julie C. Blackwood +5 more
TL;DR: It is confirmed that successful control depends on the relative contributions of bat‐to‐bat and environment‐to-bat contact to Pd transmission, and additionally found that the route of transmission can influence whether interpopulation exchange increases or decreases control efficacy.
Journal ArticleDOI
Microbial isolates with Anti-Pseudogymnoascus destructans activities from Western Canadian bat wings
TL;DR: In this article , a coculture assay was performed on the wings of wild bats and screened for inhibitory activity against Pseudogymnoascus destructans (Pd) infection in western North America.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
Importance of pollinators in changing landscapes for world crops
Alexandra-Maria Klein,Bernard E. Vaissière,James H. Cane,Ingolf Steffan-Dewenter,Saul A. Cunningham,Claire Kremen,Teja Tscharntke +6 more
TL;DR: It is found that fruit, vegetable or seed production from 87 of the leading global food crops is dependent upon animal pollination, while 28 crops do not rely upon animalPollination, however, global production volumes give a contrasting perspective.
Journal ArticleDOI
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TL;DR: Nature's Services brings together world-renowned scientists from a variety of disciplines to examine the character and value of ecosystem services, the damage that has been done to them, and the consequent implications for human society.