Danilo Russo

Identification of twenty‐two bat species (Mammalia: Chiroptera) from Italy by analysis of time‐expanded recordings of echolocation calls

Spectral and temporal features of echolocation calls emitted by 22 bat species from Italy (three rhinolophids, 18 vespertilionids and the molossid Tadarida teniotis) are described. Time-expanded recordings of calls from 950 bats of known identity were examined. Rhinolophus ferrumequinum, R. hipposideros, R. euryale and T. teniotis could be identified by measuring the call frequency of highest energy (FMAXE). Quadratic discriminant function analysis with cross-validation was applied to calls from the remaining 18 species. A function based on start frequency (SF), end frequency (EF), FMAXE and duration (D) provided a correct overall classification of approximately 82%. A classification model at genus level that also comprised middle frequency (MF) and inter-pulse interval (IPI) reached 94% correct classification. Two separate discriminant functions were devised for species emitting FM (frequency modulated) and FM/QCF calls (i.e. calls consisting of a frequency-modulated component followed by a terminal part whose frequency is almost constant) respectively. The former function included SF, EF, FMAXE and D and provided an overall classification rate of 71%; the latter comprised EF, MF, D and IPI, and reached 96%. The functions may be applied to bat habitat surveys in southern Italy since they cover most of the species occurring in the area.

Modelling the impact of agricultural abandonment and wildfires on vertebrate diversity in Mediterranean Europe

Agricultural land abandonment, widespread in the Mediterranean, is leading to a recovery of scrubland and forests which are replacing open habitats and increasing wildfire events. Using published data, we modelled the global and regional impact of abandonment and wildfires on 554 species of terrestrial vertebrates occurring in Mediterranean Europe. For all groups except amphibians, open habitats or farmland sustained higher species richness. Open habitats showed regional differences in their conservation value, western areas being particularly important for birds and amphibians and eastern areas for reptiles. Scrublands hosted fewer species than open habitats, farmland and forest, but sustained several endemic birds and mammals. The greater species richness of forests was mostly due to species widespread in Europe. Wildfires promote scrubland expansion in detriment of forest; because more species are associated to eastern forests, fire is predicted to affect more seriously this region. Scrubland conservation value was found to be highest in the west, where fire might have a positive impact. Fire regime, however, plays a crucial role. Although large fires have a negative impact, small-scale fires may favour biodiversity in abandoned areas. Due to the intrinsic difficulty in managing abandoned land to preserve the original Mediterranean vertebrate diversity, the best option to achieve this goal is the development of policies designed to make farmers and traditional farmland survive.

Roost selection by barbastelle bats (Barbastella barbastellus, Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) in beech woodlands of central Italy: consequences for conservation

We investigated roost selection by Barbastella barbastellus in a mountainous area of central Italy. Twenty-five bats, mostly lactating females, were radio-tracked to 33 roost trees. Trees in unmanaged woodland were favoured as roost trees; woodland subject to limited logging was used in proportion to availability, and areas where open woodland and pasture occurred were avoided. Selection depended on tree condition (dead beech trees were preferred) and height (roost trees were taller than random ones). Cavity selection was based on cavity type, height and entrance direction: roost cavities were mainly beneath loose bark, at a greater height above ground and facing south more frequently than random cavities. Untouched areas of mature woodland should be preserved to provide roosting conditions for B. barbastellus. In logged areas, harvesting protocols should save dead and mature trees; frequent roost switching and small colony size imply that large numbers of roost trees are needed.

Habitat selection by the Mediterranean horseshoe bat, Rhinolophus euryale (Chiroptera: Rhinolophidae) in a rural area of southern Italy and implications for conservation

We studied habitat selection by Rhinolophus euryale in a rural area of southern Italy in 1998–2000 by radio-tracking. Two comparisons were carried out, one between habitat occurrence within individual home ranges and within the study area, the other between time spent in each foraging habitat and habitat occurrence within the home range. The first analysis showed that olive groves and conifer plantations were, respectively, the most and the least important habitats. The second analysis highlighted the importance of woodland for R.euryale , while urban sites, open areas and conifer plantations were avoided. We recommend that clearing of continuous, large areas of woodland for tree harvesting should be avoided. Conifers should not be used for reforestation. Urbanisation should be limited in the areas of greatest importance for the species, and linear landscape elements such as tree lines and hedgerows should be maintained. # 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Habitat selection by the highly endangered long-horned beetle Rosalia alpina in Southern Europe: a multiple spatial scale assessment

Despite the popularity of the saproxylic cerambycid Rosalia alpina as a flagship species, its ecology is still poorly know, especially in the southern part of its range. Detailed information on its habitat preferences is needed to plan appropriate management. We set our multiple spatial scale assessment of habitat preferences in a beech forest of central Italy whose landscape, featuring both unmanaged forest and two types of grazed open forest, allowed us to look at the influence of different land uses. Preferred trees occurred in open sites, and those close to tall undergrowth were avoided. A range of moribund or dead trees were used: those preferred had a lower percentage canopy closure, significantly thicker bark, and were more sun-exposed, than the average. Logistic regression showed that the most important variables for selection were distance from nearest occupied tree, bark thickness, undergrowth height and irradiation. Occurrence likelihood augmented as the distance from nearest other occupied tree increased. Despite being mostly unmanaged, forest was avoided, whereas open forest (with trees pruned by ‘shredding’) was used more than expected. Although intensive forestry limits the availability of dead wood, closed forest may be unsuitable when shadowing useful substrate. The disappearance of traditional forms of forest management as shredding and moderate cattle grazing may lead to woody vegetation expansion and habitat closure eventually threatening the persistence of R. alpina. The return to traditional habitat management would be beneficial to R. alpina, an issue that conservation plans should carefully take it into account.

Sensitivity of bats to urbanization: a review

In this article we review the current knowledge of the effects of urban expansion on bats and assess the potential of these mammals as bioindicators of urbanization. The response of bats to this process is highly species-specific: some species tolerate urban habitat or are even favoured by its roosting or foraging opportunities, others are affected by the loss or fragmentation of key natural habitat, or by the physical and chemical pollution associated with urbanization. Species responses generally translate into altered community structures, with few markedly dominating species. We propose different hypothetical models of bat fitness along an urbanization gradient and discuss why bat population density may not be an effective fitness proxy to assess the reactions of these mammals to urban expansion. We also suggest that urban habitat may act as an ecological trap even for apparently synurbic species. Overall, bat sensitivity to urbanization makes these mammals promising candidates to track the effects of this process of land use change on the biota, but more studies, specifically tailored to explore this role, are needed.

Threats from climate change to terrestrial vertebrate hotspots in Europe.

We identified hotspots of terrestrial vertebrate species diversity in Europe and adjacent islands. Moreover, we assessed the extent to which by the end of the 21st century such hotspots will be exposed to average monthly temperature and precipitation patterns which can be regarded as extreme if compared to the climate experienced during 1950-2000. In particular, we considered the entire European sub-continent plus Turkey and a total of 1149 species of terrestrial vertebrates. For each species, we developed species-specific expert-based distribution models (validated against field data) which we used to calculate species richness maps for mammals, breeding birds, amphibians, and reptiles. Considering four global circulation model outputs and three emission scenarios, we generated an index of risk of exposure to extreme climates, and we used a bivariate local Moran’s I to identify the areas with a significant association between hotspots of diversity and high risk of exposure to extreme climates. Our results outline that the Mediterranean basin represents both an important hotspot for biodiversity and especially for threatened species for all taxa. In particular, the Iberian and Italian peninsulas host particularly high species richness as measured over all groups, while the eastern Mediterranean basin is particularly rich in amphibians and reptiles; the islands (both Macaronesian and Mediterranean) host the highest richness of threatened species for all taxa occurs. Our results suggest that the main hotspots of biodiversity for terrestrial vertebrates may be extensively influenced by the climate change projected to occur over the coming decades, especially in the Mediterranean bioregion, posing serious concerns for biodiversity conservation.

Habitat selection in sympatric Rhinolophus mehelyi and R. euryale (Mammalia: Chiroptera)

Habitat selection was studied in two rhinolophid (Chiroptera) species,Rhinolophusmehelyi andR.euryale, breeding in the same roost in south-west Spain. The first analysis of habitat selection by R. mehelyi is provided, and the hypothesis explored that despite their close relatedness, in sympatry the two bat species showed different habitat preferences. For both species, the least preferred habitats were open habitats such as scrubland, grassland and arable land. As found elsewhere, R. euryale preferred broadleaved woodland. In addition, R. mehelyi also foraged in habitats characterized by loose trees, such as the ‘dehesa’, a semi-natural oak savanna. The progressive disappearance of the dehesa, jeopardized by land-use change, may not harm R. euryale, but could represent a threat to R. mehelyi, which would then be restricted to dense woodland, possibly competing with other bat species, includingR.euryale. To conserve both species, the maintenance of a variety of wooded habitats of differing density is recommended.

Integrated operational taxonomic units (IOTUs) in echolocating bats: a bridge between molecular and traditional taxonomy.

Background Nowadays, molecular techniques are widespread tools for the identification of biological entities. However, until very few years ago, their application to taxonomy provoked intense debates between traditional and molecular taxonomists. To prevent every kind of disagreement, it is essential to standardize taxonomic definitions. Along these lines, we introduced the concept of Integrated Operational Taxonomic Unit (IOTU). IOTUs come from the concept of Operational Taxonomic Unit (OTU) and paralleled the Molecular Operational Taxonomic Unit (MOTU). The latter is largely used as a standard in many molecular-based works (even if not always explicitly formalized). However, while MOTUs are assigned solely on molecular variation criteria, IOTUs are identified from patterns of molecular variation that are supported by at least one more taxonomic characteristic. Methodology/Principal Findings We tested the use of IOTUs on the widest DNA barcoding dataset of Italian echolocating bats species ever assembled (i.e. 31 species, 209 samples). We identified 31 molecular entities, 26 of which corresponded to the morphologically assigned species, two MOTUs and three IOTUs. Interestingly, we found three IOTUs in Myotis nattereri, one of which is a newly described lineage found only in central and southern Italy. In addition, we found a level of molecular variability within four vespertilionid species deserving further analyses. According to our scheme two of them (i.e. M. bechsteinii and Plecotus auritus) should be ranked as unconfirmed candidate species (UCS). Conclusions/Significance From a systematic point of view, IOTUs are more informative than the general concept of OTUs and the more recent MOTUs. According to information content, IOTUs are closer to species, although it is important to underline that IOTUs are not species. Overall, the use of a more precise panel of taxonomic entities increases the clarity in the systematic field and has the potential to fill the gaps between modern and traditional taxonomy.

Phylogeography and postglacial recolonization of Europe by Rhinolophus hipposideros: evidence from multiple genetic markers

The demographic history of Rhinolophus hipposideros (lesser horseshoe bat) was reconstructed across its European, North African and Middle‐Eastern distribution prior to, during and following the most recent glaciations by generating and analysing a multimarker data set. This data set consisted of an X‐linked nuclear intron (Bgn; 543 bp), mitochondrial DNA (cytb‐tRNA‐control region; 1630 bp) and eight variable microsatellite loci for up to 373 individuals from 86 localities. Using this data set of diverse markers, it was possible to determine the species’ demography at three temporal stages. Nuclear intron data revealed early colonization into Europe from the east, which pre‐dates the Quaternary glaciations. The mtDNA data supported multiple glacial refugia across the Mediterranean, the largest of which were found in the Ibero‐Maghreb region and an eastern location (Anatolia/Middle East)–that were used by R. hipposideros during the most recent glacial cycles. Finally, microsatellites provided the most recent information on these species’ movements since the Last Glacial Maximum and suggested that lineages that had diverged into glacial refugia, such as in the Ibero‐Maghreb region, have remained isolated. These findings should be used to inform future conservation management strategies for R. hipposideros and show the power of using a multimarker data set for phylogeographic studies.