Mayara Almeida Martins

Bat Species Richness (Mammalia, Chiroptera) Along an Elevational Gradient in the Atlantic Forest of Southeastern Brazil

The effect of elevational gradients on the richness and composition of communities are reflected by different biotas. The objective of this study was to document changes in the species richness and composition of bats along a tropical elevational gradient between 500 and 2,500 m of elevation in southeastern Brazil. We carried out fieldwork from June 2009 to December 2012 with the use of mist nets. During 32 sampling nights we recorded 270 bats from 22 species. Species richness peaked around low-elevation (500–1,000 m a.s.l.) and there was richness decrease at higher elevations. The analysis of bat assemblage between the elevational range showed a significant difference in species composition along an elevational gradient. Bat richness and abundance were negatively related to altitude.

New records of mites (Acari: Spinturnicidae) associated with bats (Mammalia, Chiroptera) in two Brazilian biomes: Pantanal and Caatinga

A first survey of mite species that ectoparasitize bats in the states of Ceará and Mato Grosso was conducted. The specimens of bats and their mites were collected in areas of the Caatinga and Pantanal biomes. A total of 450 spinturnicids representing two genera and ten species was collected from 15 bat species in the Private Reserve of the Natural Patrimony Serra das Almas, Ceará State, Northeast Brazil and 138 spinturnicids represented by two genera and four species were found in seven bats species collected in Private Reserve of the Natural Patrimony Sesc Pantanal, Mato Grosso State, Central-Western Brazil. The occurrence of Cameronieta genus and the species Mesoperiglischrus natali as well as four new associations (Periglischrus iheringi - Chiroderma vizottoi; P. micronycteridis - Micronycteris sanborni; P. paracutisternus - Trachops cirrhosus; Spinturnix americanus - Myotis riparius) are registered for the first time in Brazil.

New records of bats for the state of Piauí, northeastern Brazil (Mammalia: Chiroptera)

We provide four news records of bats— Micronycteris hirsuta (Peters, 1869), Dermanura gnoma (Handley, 1987), Myotis riparius Handley, 1960, and Myotis lavali Moratelli, Peracchi, Dias and Oliveira, 2011 to the Piaui State, northestern Brazil. We also provide measurements and taxonomic comments about the species recorded. With these new records, 59 bat species are now recognized for the Piaui.

Bats in a Cerrado landscape of Northern Brazil: species occurrence, influence of environmental heterogeneity and seasonality, and eight new records for the State of Tocantins

Abstract Patterns of bat distribution in Cerrado can be influenced by habitat heterogeneity and seasonal variation. We described the bat fauna in Cerrado landscape during an environment-monitoring program in Tocantins State, Northern Brazil. Additionally, we tested the influence of habitat heterogeneity and seasonality on the abundance and species richness of Phyllostomidae in this region by Generalized Linear Mixed Models. In 2010, we sampled 40 nights (rainy and dry seasons) in four vegetation types of Cerrado biome. Taxonomic identification was based on measurements and qualitative diagnostics. With a sampling effort of 43,965 m2·h, we captured 274 bats of 30 species, 22 genera and six families. Carollia perspicillata was the most abundant species captured. Colinas do Tocantins municipality was richer than Goiantins (26 and 19 species respectively). The best model for abundance was the interaction between heterogeneity and seasonality and the best model for richness was a mix between these two variables. We registered eight new species for the Tocantins including three species considered threatened with extinction at national level and one at global level. Such results highlight that this region is important for new investigations on the Cerrado biome.