TY  - GEN
A1  - Heim, Olga
A1  - Lorenz, Lukas
A1  - Kramer-Schadt, Stephanie
A1  - Jung, Kirsten
A1  - Voigt, Christian C.
A1  - Eccard, Jana
T1  - Landscape and scale-dependent spatial niches of bats foraging above intensively used arable fields
T2  - Postprints der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe
N2  - Introduction

Bats are threatened by agricultural intensification, and although bat ecology in agricultural landscapes is in the focus of current research, the effects of interacting spatiotemporal factors on species-specific bat activity above farmland remain understudied. Our aim was to identify spatiotemporal factors and their interactions relevant for the activity of bat species above conventionally managed arable fields.
Methods

We repeatedly monitored relative bat activity above open arable fields in Germany using acoustic monitoring. We used site-related biotic and abiotic factors and landscape characteristics across five spatial scales, their combinations, and interactions to identify those factors which best explain variation in bat activity.
Results

Numerous interactions between landscape characteristics and the insect abundance affected bat activity above fields. For instance, Pipistrellus pipistrellus became more active with increasing insect abundance, but only above fields with a low proportion of woody vegetation cover in the surroundings. Additionally, the level of bat activity in summer depended on landscape characteristics. For example, the activity of Pipistrellus nathusii was relatively low in summer above fields that were surrounded by vegetation patches with a high degree of edge complexity (e.g., hedgerow). However, the activity remained at a relatively high level and did not differ between seasons above fields that were surrounded by vegetation patches with a low degree of edge complexity (e.g., roundly shaped forest patch).
Conclusions

Our results revealed that landscape characteristics and their interactions with insect abundance affected bat activity above conventionally managed fields and highlighted the opportunistic foraging behavior of bats. To improve the conditions for bats in agricultural landscapes, we recommend re-establishing landscape heterogeneity to protect aquatic habitats and to increase arthropod availability.
KW  - AgroScapeLabs
KW  - european bat species
KW  - agriculture
KW  - landscape
KW  - multi-scale habitat modeling
KW  - ecosystem service
KW  - conservation
Y1  - 2020
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-428166
IS  - 826
ER  -