Valéria da Cunha Tavares

Checklist of Brazilian bats, with comments on original records

Lists of Brazilian bats have been compiled since the late 19th century, with remarkable variation in the criteria for species inclusion and use of nomenclature. To update the list of extant bat species that occur in Brazil, the Brazilian Bat Research Society created the Committee of the List of Brazilian Bats. Here we report the first result of the work of this Committee: a list with nine families, 68 genera, and 178 species with documented occurrence in Brazil, including nomenclatural comments. We also present two additional species lists: one with doubtful records (10 species) and other with erroneous records (six species). Since the beginning of the 21st century, 35 new bat species have been recorded for Brazil, and we anticipate that more species will be uncovered over the next years.

Reassessment of the evolutionary relationships within the dog‐faced bats, genus Cynomops (Chiroptera: Molossidae)

The low representativeness of the dog‐faced bats (genus Cynomops Thomas, ) in collections has constrained the study of the diversity and the evolutionary relationships within this genus. Taxonomic revisions of some taxa, in particular the large‐sized Cynomops abrasus (Temminck, ), are crucial for understanding the phylogeny of Cynomops. A total of four subspecies of C. abrasus have been described to date, all widespread in South America: C. a. mastivus (Thomas, ), C. a. brachymeles (Peters, 1865), C. a. cerastes (Thomas, ) and C. a. abrasus (Temminck, ). Here, we evaluated the phylogenetic relationships within Cynomops, and the status of the four C. abrasus subspecies using complete sequences of two mitochondrial genes (Cyt b and COI) and 39 morphological characters. Maximum‐parsimony, maximum‐likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic reconstructions recovered a novel hypothesis for Cynomops, supported the recognition of C. a. mastivus as a distinct species, separated from C. abrasus, and two hypotheses of lineages previously unrecognized for Cynomops. The use of mitochondrial genes combined with morphological characters revealed again to be a powerful tool to recover the phylogenetic relationships within Cynomops and demonstrated that the genus is more diverse than previously thought.

Molecular, morphological and acoustic identification of Eumops maurus and Eumops hansae (Chiroptera: Molossidae) with new reports from Central Amazonia

Eumops maurus and Eumops hansae are rarely captured Neotropical molossid bats for which information on taxonomy, natural history, and spatial distribution are scarce. This translates into a poor understanding of their ecology and limits the delimitation of useful characters for their identification. Here, we describe records of these two molossids from the Central Brazilian Amazon, providing data on their external and craniodental morphology, DNA barcode (COI) sequences complemented by acoustic data for the species. Morphological characters, DNA sequence data and phylogenetic relationships within the genus Eumops were consistent with those previously described for both species. Echolocation call characteristics did not differ significantly so as to be useful for separating E. maurus and E. hansae from other congeners. Our records are, respectively the first and the second for Central Amazonia as one individual previously attributed to Eumops amazonicus from Manaus may be considered a junior synonym for E. hansae. These new records increase the extent of the species’ known ranges, partially filling in previous existing gaps in their distribution in central South America. Our data further suggest that these molossid bats forage in a wider range of habitats than previously thought.

The Bat Fauna from Southwestern Brazil and Its Affinities with the Fauna of Western Amazon

Historically for bats, the southwestern Brazilian Amazon has had scant biological data available, which compromised large-scale comparisons and macroecological studies that could support conservation initiatives in the area. We tested faunal similarity among 26 well-sampled bat assemblages distributed throughout the Amazon, including our database from surveys in the upper Madeira River region, a core area of the southwestern Brazilian Amazon. To document bats we conducted nocturnal mist-net sampling under standardized Rapid Assessments for Long-term Ecological Research (RAPELD) protocols in forests and farmlands, and diurnal search of roosts in rocky outcrops located along the riverbed of the Madeira River. We captured 2930 bats representing 66 species, 20 of which were previously unreported for the region. Thirty-four species recorded were exclusive to forests, and two to the rocky outcrops of the Madeira River. Frugivores outnumbered the other trophic guilds, followed by the gleaning insectivores in forests, and then aerial insectivores in the farmlands. The southwestern Brazilian Amazon fauna is more similar to others from the western Amazon and less similar to the bat fauna from the eastern Amazon and the Guianas. This geographic association is undoubtedly related to a more recent history of formation of the terrestrial ecosystems of the western Amazon lowlands. With 87 species currently known, the southwestern Brazilian Amazon is now one of the richest areas in the world for bats, which helps to understand the limits of the distributional patterns between eastern and western Amazon bat faunas.

Establishing baseline biodiversity data prior to hydroelectric dam construction to monitoring impacts to bats in the Brazilian Amazon

The modification of Amazonian rivers by the construction of megaprojects of hydroelectric dams has widely increased over the last decade. Robust monitoring programs have been rarely conducted prior to the establishment of dams to measure to what extent the fauna, and its associated habitats may be affected by upcoming impacts. Using bats as models, we performed analyses throughout the area under the influence of the Santo Antônio hydroelectric dam, Southwestern Brazilian Amazonia before its construction to estimate how the fauna and its associated habitats would be affected by the upcoming impacts. We surveyed bats in 49 plots distributed along the areas going to be inundated by the dam and those remaining dry. As predictors for the species distribution, we tested the variables of vegetation structure and topography. Species composition largely differed between the dry plots and the plots located in areas that will be flooded, and this was strongly associated with the variables of forest basal area and elevation. Vegetation-related variables also had strong influence on the guilds distribution. The flooding of lower elevations areas is expected to negatively affect the species number and abundance of frugivorous species. In contrast, it is likely that animalivores will be less vulnerable to dam-induced flooding, since they were abundant in the areas not expect to be inundated. We urge for the implementation of studies to predict impacts caused by large hydroelectric dams, including tests of the influence of the local conditions that shape diversity to avoid massive losses of the biota, and to build preventive monitoring and management actions.

Roosting ecology of Stenodermatinae bats (Phyllostomidae): evolution of foliage roosting and correlated phenotypes

Guilherme S. T. GARBINO* PPG-Zoologia, Departamento de Zoologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil. Email: gstgarbino@hotmail.com Valéria da Cunha TAVARES PPG-Zoologia, Departamento de Zoologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil and Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Estadual de Minas Gerais, 32400-000, Ibirité, MG, Brazil. Email: val.c.tavares@gmail.com

Vertical stratification in bat assemblages of the Atlantic Forest of south-eastern Brazil

Tropical forests are three-dimensional spaces with species and resources heterogeneously distributed. The vertical stratification of tropical forest biotas has been observed for several organisms and regions, but, surprisingly, the vertical structuring of large areas of important tropical forests, such as Brazils Atlantic Forest, remains poorly studied. Here, we addressed the use of different Atlantic Forest strata by bats, comparing ensemble composition and relative abundance between the understorey and the canopy. A total of 618 bats belonging to 31 species and four families were recorded, including 11 species of frugivores and seven species of gleaning insectivores, the two trophic guilds predominantly represented in our sampling. Fifteen species were captured exclusively in the canopy, and six exclusively in the understorey, and many of those species were represented by a low number of captures ( Chiroderma villosum was exclusively captured in the canopy, Artibeus lituratus was netted predominantly in the canopy and Carollia perspicillata and Desmodus rotundus were mostly captured in the understorey. Although processes such as resource partitioning between species and ecomorphological constraints may explain the differential use of forest strata, this remains little understood because of the scarcity of data for the Atlantic forest canopies.

Distribution and taxonomy of the common big-eared bat Micronycteris microtis (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae) in South America

Abstract Understanding the distribution of the common big-eared bat Micronycteris microtis has been constrained by difficulties in mapping characters that securely differentiate it from its congener, Micronycteris megalotis. We studied individuals of dark-bellied Micronycteris from several localities in northern and southeastern Brazil and tested the consistency of characters traditionally used in their differentiation. Characters that separate M. microtis from M. megalotis are the ear length, the fur at the leading edge of the pinna length, and the dorsal fur length. On the basis of our revised identifications, we confirm the occurrence of M. microtis in southeastern Brazil, and provide new records from localities nested in the Cerrado/Atlantic forest transition area of the state of Minas Gerais, and in the Amazonian forests of the northeastern and northwestern, states of Pará and Rondônia. M. microtis is now known to occur sympatrically with M. megalotis in four Amazonian localities. M. microtis used iron ore caves from Carajás, Pará, northern Brazil, and the Serra da Moeda and Serra do Rola Moça State Park, Minas Gerais, southern Brazil, whereas sympatric M. megalotis did not in both locations. Moreover, M. microtis from the lower Xingu River used small caves formed by rock outcrops to roost.

First record of the rare bat Cyttarops alecto (Thomas, 1913) (Chiroptera: Emballonuridae) for the western Brazilian Amazonia, with comments on the type locality

Abstract Cyttarops alecto is a rare bat, poorly recorded along its distributional range. In this paper, we report the first record of C. alecto for the western Brazilian Amazon, provide information on distribution and morphological variation of the species along with taxonomic comments based on comparisons of our specimen with the previous information reported in the literature, and we reinterpret the precise type locality for the species.

TENT USE BY Artibeus AND Uroderma (CHIROPTERA,PHYLLOSTOMIDAE) IN NORTHERN COLOMBIA

During day roosts surveys for bats in the Parque Nacional Natural Tayrona, northern Colombia, we found occupied tents made of leaves of the palm species Sabal mauritiiformis and Cocos nucifera. We found Artibeus jamaicensis and Uroderma convexum using the tents, with groups of U. convexum ranging from 1 to 23 individuals, and a single occurrence for A. jamaicensis. A tent was simultaneously occupied by U. convexum and Thecadactylus rapicauda (Squamata). Although tent-roosting is known to be a widespread behavior for stenodermatine bats, these are the first observations of tent-roosting bats in northern Colombia and highlight a high potential for finding tent-using bats in the region. RESUMEN. Uso de tiendas de hojas por Artibeus y Uroderma (Chiroptera, Phyllostomidae) en el norte de Colombia. Durante una búsqueda diurna de refugios de murciélagos en el Parque Nacional Natural Tayrona, en el norte de Colombia, encontramos tiendas hechas de hojas de las palmeras Sabal mauritiiformis y Cocos nucifera. Encontramos a Artibeus jamaicensis y Uroderma convexum utilizando las tiendas, con grupos de U. convexum que variaban de 1 a 23 individuos y una sola ocurrencia de A. jamaicensis. Una tienda era ocupada simultáneamente por U. convexum y Thecadactylus rapicauda (Squamata). Aunque se sabe que el acampar en tiendas es un comportamiento generalizado para los murciélagos stenodermatine, estas son las primeras observaciones de murciélagos tienderos en el norte de Colombia y destacan un alto potencial para encontrar murciélagos que usan tiendas en la región.