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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Book ChapterDOI
Increasing Awareness of Ecosystem Services Provided by Bats
TL;DR: Bats are key ecological players that control major pest insects, limit the propagation of disease vectors, and provide energy via bat guano to cave ecosystems.
Journal ArticleDOI
Bat predation by spiders.
TL;DR: Evidence suggests that spider predation on flying vertebrates is more widespread than previously assumed.
Journal ArticleDOI
Second generation sequencing and morphological faecal analysis reveal unexpected foraging behaviour by Myotis nattereri (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) in winter
Paul R. Hope,Kristine Bohmann,Kristine Bohmann,M. Thomas P. Gilbert,Marie Lisandra Zepeda-Mendoza,Orly Razgour,Gareth Jones +6 more
TL;DR: The winter diet of Natterer's bat (Myotis nattereri) is substantially different from other times of the year confirming that this species has a wide and adaptable dietary niche.
Journal ArticleDOI
Consequences of a large-scale fragmentation experiment for Neotropical bats : disentangling the relative importance of local and landscape-scale effects
Ricardo Rocha,Adrià López-Baucells,Fábio Z. Farneda,Fábio Z. Farneda,Fábio Z. Farneda,Milou Groenenberg,Milou Groenenberg,Paulo Estefano D. Bobrowiec,Mar Cabeza,Jorge M. Palmeirim,Jorge M. Palmeirim,Christoph F. J. Meyer,Christoph F. J. Meyer,Christoph F. J. Meyer +13 more
TL;DR: In this article, the authors used a whole-ecosystem manipulation experiment in the Brazilian Amazon to investigate the relative roles of local and landscape attributes in affecting bat assemblages at an interior-edge-matrix disturbance gradient.
Book ChapterDOI
Cute, Creepy, or Crispy—How Values, Attitudes, and Norms Shape Human Behavior Toward Bats
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors review the key theoretical and empirical perspectives on human behavior toward wildlife and report on studies of bats in these contexts whenever possible, and recommend ways in which bat biologists can use some of this knowledge to enhance less structured or opportunistic outreach efforts encountered during their research activities.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
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TL;DR: Wilson and Reeder's Mammal Species of the World as discussed by the authors is the classic reference book on the taxonomic classification and distribution of more than 5400 species of mammals that exist today.
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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
Nature's services: societal dependence on natural ecosystems.
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.