Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Experience in Using an Echo Meter Touch Ultrasonic Module in Studies of the Species Composition, Occurrence, and Biotopic Preferences of Bats (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) in Voronezh Oblast

  • Published:
Biology Bulletin Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract—

The results of surveying echolocation signals of bats, performed using an Echo Meter Touch 2 PRO ultrasonic detector, are given. The signals were recorded in the time–expansion mode and identified manually in the BatSound program. The surveys were made in June–August 2019–2020 in the northwestern part of Voronezh oblast within the Federal Voronezh State Nature Reserve. Four types of biotopes were used as model territories to identify the species composition, occurrence, and biotopic confinement: a river bank, a forest lake, the expanse of a former burnt area, and a village. A total of 2332 audio recordings of ultrasonic signals were made. After manual verification, 1615 records (69.3%) belonging to 13 bat species were identified with a high probability (located in descending order according to the number of occurrences): N. noctula > N. leisleri > P. pygmaeus > V. murinus > P. nathusii > M. dasycneme > M. daubentonii > N. lasiopterus > P. auritus > P. pipistrellus > M. brandtii > E. nilssonii. The habitat of E. nilssonii was established for the first time in the territory studied. Biotopically, near-water areas, where the greatest diversity was noted, were the most attractive for bats. However, the distribution of species here was not the same. M. brandtii, P. pygmaeus, E. nilssonii, and M. dasycneme preferred river biotopes predominantly and were almost absent above the forest lake or were indifferent to this space. M. daubentonii, V. murinus, P. nathusii, and E. serotinus gave the greatest preference to the lake territory. Burnt areas were unattractive to most species, except for N. noctula and E. serotinus. An indifferent attitude to the territory of the village or its avoidance was noted for all species. Alpha diversity increased in the following series of biotopes: burnt area–village–river bank–forest lake, over which the largest number of species was noted with greater evenness according to the index of relative occurrence. The detected differences in biotopic confinement are discussed in connection with the spatial location of biotopes.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 4.
Fig. 5.
Fig. 6.

Similar content being viewed by others

REFERENCES

  1. Adams, A.M., Jantzen, M.K., Hamilton, R.M., and Fenton, M.B., Do you hear what I hear? Implications of detector selection for acoustic monitoring of bats, Methods Ecol. Evol., 2012, vol. 3, no. 6, pp. 992–998.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Ahlén, I. and Baagøe, H.J., Use of ultrasound detectors for bat studies in Europe: experiences from field identification, surveys, and monitoring, Acta Chiropterol., 1999 vol. 1, no. 2, pp. 137–150.

    Google Scholar 

  3. Barabash-Nikiforov, I.I., Zveri yugo-vostochnoi chasti Chernozemnogo tsentra (Animals of the Southeastern Part of the Chernozem Center), Voronezh: Voronezh. Knizh. Izd., 1957.

  4. Barabash-Nikiforov, I.I. and Pavlovskii, N.K., Terrestrial vertebrate fauna of the Voronezh State Reserve, Tr. Voronezh. Gos. Zapov., 1948, no. 2.

  5. Barataud, M., Acoustic Ecology of European Bats. Species Identification and Studies of Their Habitats and Foraging Behaviour, Biotope Editions, Mèze, Paris: National Museum of Natural History (collection Inventaires et biodiversité), 2015.

  6. Blake, D., Hutson, A.M., Racey, P.A., Rydell, J., and Speakman, J.R., Use of lamplitroads by foraging bats in southern England, J. Zool., 1994, vol. 234, pp. 453–462.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Erdakov, L.N., Efimov, V.M., Galaktionov, Yu.K., and Sergeev, V.E., Quantitative assessment of habitat fidelity, Ekologiya, 1978, no. 3, pp. 105–107.

  8. Estok, P. and Siemers, B.M., Calls of a bird-eater: the echolocation behaviour of the enigmatic greater noctule, Nyctalus lasiopterus, Acta Chiropterol., 2009, vol. 11, no. 2, pp. 405–414.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Fenton, M.B., Science and the conservation of bats, J. Mamm., 1997, vol. 78, pp. 1–14.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Frick, F.W., Kingston, T., and Flanders, J., Review of the major threats and challenges to global bat conservation, Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci., 2020, vol. 1469, no. 1, pp. 5–25.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Fukui, D., Agetsuma, N., and Hill, D.A., Acoustic identification of eight species of bat (Mammalia: Chiroptera) inhabiting forests of southern Hokkaido, Japan: potential for conservation monitoring, Zool. Sci., 2004, vol. 21, pp. 947–955.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Furlonger, C.L., Dewar, H.J., and Fenton, M.B., Habitat use by foraging insectivorous bats, Can. J. Zool., 1987, vol. 65, pp. 284–288.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Gorbachev, A.A., Spatiotemporal structure of the fauna of bats (Mammalia, Chiroptera) in the Bryansk oblast, Extended Abstract of Cand. Sci. (Biol.) Dissertation, Bryansk: OOO Ladomir, 2013.

  14. Il’in, V.Yu., Smirnov, D.G., Krasil’nikov, D.B., and Yanyaeva, N.M., Materialy k kadastru rukokrylykh (Chiroptera) Evropeiskoi Rossii i smezhnykh regionov: spravochnoe posobie (Materials for the Cadastre of Bats (Chiroptera) of European Russia and Adjacent Regions: A Reference Guide), Pensa: Penz. Gos. Pedagog. Univ., 2002.

  15. Izmailov, I.V., Fauna and ecology of birds and mammals of the Khoperskii State Reserve, Extended Abstract of Cand. Sci. (Biol.) Dissertation, Voronezh, 1954.

  16. Jaccard, P., Distribution de la flore alpine dans le Bassin des Dranses et dans quelques regions voisines, Bull. Soc. Vaud. Sci. Nat, 1901, vol. 140, pp. 241–272.

    Google Scholar 

  17. Jones, G. and Ransome, R.D., Echolocation calls of bats are influenced by maternal effects and change over a lifetime, Proc. R. Soc. London, Ser. B, 1993, vol. 252, pp. 125–128.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Jones, G., Gordon, T., and Nightingale, J., Sex and age differences in the echolocation calls of the lesser horseshoe bat, Rhinolophus hipposideros, Mammalia, 1992, vol. 56, pp. 189–194.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Jones, G., Jacobs, D., Kunz, T.H., Wilig, M.R., and Racey, P.A., Carpe Noctem: the importance of bats as bioindicators, Endangered Species Res., 2009, vol. 8, pp. 3–115.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Jones, K.E., Russ, J., Bashta, A.-T., Bilhari, Z., Catto, C., et al., Indicator Bats Program: a system for the global acoustic monitoring of bats, in Biodiversity Monitoring and Conservation: Bridging the Gaps Between Global Commitment and Local Action, Collen, B., Pettorelli, N., Baillie, J.E.M., and Durant, S., Eds., London: Wiley-Blackwell, 2013, pp. 213–247.

    Google Scholar 

  21. Kasso, M. and Balakrishnan, M., Ecological and economic importance of bats (order Chiroptera), ISRN Biodiversity, 2013, vol. 2013, р. 187415.

  22. Khitsova, L.N. and Sherstyanykh, E.I., The community of ectoparasites of the late Eptesicus serotinus (Schreber, 1774) kozhan in the conditions of the Usman forest, Vestn. Voronezh. Gos. Univ., Ser. Khim. Biol. Farm., 2014, no. 2, pp. 96–101.

  23. Khristenko, E.A., Species composition of bats in some areas of the Tver oblast, Vestn. Tvet. Gos. Univ., Ser. Biol. Ekol., 2015, no. 2, pp. 65–67.

  24. Krasnaya kniga Voronezhskoi oblasti, v 2-kh tomakh (Red Data Book of the Voronezh Oblast, in 2 vols), vol. 2: Zhivotnye (Animals), Negrobov, O.P., Sci. Ed., Voronezh: MODEK, 2011.

  25. Krasnaya kniga Voronezhskoi oblasti, v 2-kh tomakh (Red Data Book of the Voronezh Oblast, in 2 vols), vol. 2: Zhivotnye (Animals), Negrobov, O.P. and Numerov, A.D., Eds., Voronezh: Tsentr dukhovnogo vozrozhdeniya Chernozemnogo kraya, 2018.

  26. Kunz, T.H. and Lumsden, L.F., Ecology of cavity and foliage roosting bats, in Bat Ecology, Chicago: Univ. Chicago Press, 2003, pp. 3–89.

    Google Scholar 

  27. Kunz, T.H., Braun de Torrez, E., Bauer, D., Lobova, T., and Fleming, T.H., Ecosystem services provided by bats, Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci., 2011, vol. 1223, pp. 1–38.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Kusch, J. and Schotter, F., Effects of fine-scale foraging habitat selection on bat community structure and diversity in a temperate low mountain range forest, Folia Zool., 2007, vol. 56, no. 3, pp. 263–276.

    Google Scholar 

  29. Kusch, J., Weber, C., Idelberger, S., and Koob, T., Foraging habitat preferences of bats in relation to food supply and spatial vegetation structures in a Western European low mountain range forest, Folia Zool., 2004, vol. 53, no. 2, pp. 113–128.

    Google Scholar 

  30. Lavrov, L.S., Bats of the Voronezh Reserve and their attraction, Tr. Voronezh. Gos. Zapov., 1953, no. 4, pp. 142–157.

  31. Lemen, C., Freeman, P.W., White, J.A., and Andersen, B.R., The problem of low agreement among automated identification programs for acoustical surveys of bats, West. North Am. Nat., 2015, vol. 75, pp. 218–225.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Marchenko, N.F., Mammals of the Khoperskii Nature Reserve. Species review. Part 2. Order Chiroptera, Blumenbah, 1779 Chiroptera, Tr. Khopersk. Gos. Zapov., Voronezh: Izd.-Poligraf. Tsentr Voronezh. Gos. Univ., 2012, no. 7, pp. 108–116.

  33. Magurran, A.E., Ecological Diversity and Its Measurement, London: Chapman and Hall, 1983.

    Google Scholar 

  34. Neuweiler, G., Foraging ecology and audition in echolocating bats, Trends Ecol. Evol., 1989, vol. 4, pp. 160–166.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  35. Obraztsov, B.V., Essay on the fauna of terrestrial vertebrates of the Tellerman experimental forestry (Borisoglebsk forest stand), Trudy Inst. Lesa Akad. Nauk SSSR, 1951, vol. 7, pp. 180–198.

    Google Scholar 

  36. Obrist, M.K., Flexible bat echolocation: the influence of individual, habitat and conspecifics on sonar signal design, Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol., 1995, vol. 36, pp. 207–219.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Obrist, M.K. and Boesch, R., BatScope manages acoustic recordings, analyses calls, and classifies bat species automatically, Can. J. Zool., 2018, vol. 96, pp. 939–954.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  38. Ognev, S.I. and Vorob’ev, K.A., Fauna nazemnykh pozvonochnykh Voronezhskoi gubernii (Terrestrial Vertebrate Fauna of the Voronezh Province), Moscow: Novaya Derevnya, 1923.

  39. Orlova, M.V., Smirnov, D.G., Vekhnik, V.P., Lukyanenko, A.M., and Zabashta, A.V., Ectoparasites and pathogens of Kuhl’s pipistrelle Pipistrellus kuhlii (Kuhl, 1817) (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae): our own and published data review, Russ. J. Biol. Invasions, 2020, vol. 11, no. 4, pp. 348–362.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  40. Panyutin, K.K., On the reproduction of common noctule, Uch. Zap. Mosk. Obl. Pedagog. Inst., 1963, vol. 76, no. 6, pp. 63–66.

    Google Scholar 

  41. Panyutin, K.K., Long-distance migrations of bats ringed in the Voronezh State Reserve, Migr. Zhivotn., 1968, no. 5, pp. 117–119.

  42. Panyutin, K.K., Notes on the biology of three species of bats, Uch. Zap. Mosk. Obl. Pedagog. Inst., 1969, vol. 224, no. 7, pp. 119–130.

    Google Scholar 

  43. Panyutin, K.K., Ecology of bats in forest landscapes, Cand. Sci. (Biol.) Dissertation, Moscow: Mosk. Obl. Pedagog. Inst. im. N.K. Krupskoi, 1970.

  44. Panyutin, K.K., Chiroptera, in Itogi mecheniya mlekopitayushchikh (Results of Banding of Mammals), Moscow: Nauka, 1980, pp. 23–46.

  45. Parsons, S. and Jones, G., Acoustic identification of twelve species of echolocating bat by discriminant function analysis and artificial neural networks, J. Exp. Biol., 2000, vol. 203, no. 17, pp. 2641–2656.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  46. Parsons, S., Thorpe, C.W., and Dawson, S.M., The echolocation calls of the long-tailed bat (Chalinolobus tuberculatus): a quantitative description and analysis of call phase, J. Mamm., vol. 78, pp. 964–976.

  47. Pedrovich, A., Eptesicus nilssonii, in Mlekopitayushchie Rossii, uploaded by D. Smirnov November 30, 2018. https://rusmam.ru/data/view?id=29151. Updated August 21, 2021.

  48. Perea, S. and Tena, E., Different bat detectors and processing software… Same results?, J. Bat Res. Conserv., 2020, vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 4–8.

    Google Scholar 

  49. Puechmaille, S.J., Borissov, I.M., Zsebok, S., Allegrini, B., Hizem, M., et al., Female mate choice can drive the evolution of high frequency echolocation in bats: a case study with Rhinolophus mehelyi, PLoS One, 2014, vol. 9, p. e103452. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0103452

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  50. Russ, J., Bat Calls of Britain and Europe. A Guide to Species Identification, London: Pelagic Publishing Ltd., 2021.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  51. Russo, D. and Jones, G., Identification of twenty-two bat species (Mammalia: Chiroptera) from Italy by analysis of time-expanded recordings of echolocation calls, J. Zool. (London), 2002, vol. 258, pp. 91–103.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  52. Russo, D. and Voigt, C.C., The use of automated identification of bat echolocation calls in acoustic monitoring: a cautionary note for a sound analysis, Ecol. Indic., 2016, vol. 66, pp. 598–602.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  53. Russo, D., Jones, G., and Mucedda, M., Influence of age, sex and body size on echolocation calls of Mediterranean (Rhinolophus euryale) and Mehely’s (Rhinolophus mehelyi) horseshoe bats (Chiroptera: Rhinolophidae), Mammalia, 2001, vol. 65, pp. 429–436.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  54. Russo, D., Mucedda, M., Bello, M., Biscardi, S., Pidinchedda, E., and Jones, G., Divergent echolocation call frequencies in insular rhinolopids (Chiroptera): a case of character displacement?, J. Biogeogr., 2007, vol. 34, pp. 2129–2138.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  55. Russo, D., Ancillotto, L., and Jones, G., Bats are still not birds in the digital era: echolocation call variation and why it matters for bat species identification, Can. J. Zool., 2017, vol. 96, pp. 63–78.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  56. Rydell, J., Seasonal use of illuminated areas by foraging northern bats Eptesicus nilssoni, Holarctic Ecol., 1991, vol. 14, pp. 203–207.

    Google Scholar 

  57. Rydell, J., Exploitation of insects around streetlamps by bats in Sweden, Funct. Ecol., 1992, vol. 6, pp. 744–750.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  58. Rydell, J. and Racey, P.A., Street lamps and the feeding ecology of insectivorous bats, Symp. Zool. Soc. London, 1995, vol. 67, pp. 291–307.

    Google Scholar 

  59. Rydell, J., Nyman, S., Eklöf, J., Jones, G., and Russo, D., Testing the performances of automated identification of bat echolocation calls: a request for prudence, Ecol. Indic., 2017, vol. 78, pp. 416–420.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  60. Silant’ev, A.A., Zoological research on the sites of the expedition of the Forest Department in 1894–1896, Tr. Eksped. Lesn. Dep., Nauchn. Otd., St. Petersburg, 1898, vol. 4, no. 2.

  61. Simmons, N.B., Order Chiroptera, in Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, Wilson, D.E. and Reeder, D.M., Eds., Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, DC, 2005, pp. 312–529.

    Google Scholar 

  62. Smirnov, D.G. and Vekhnik, V.P., On the modern distribution of Pipistrellus kuhlii (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) in the Volga region, Povolzh. Ekol. Zh., 2011, no. 2, pp. 193–202.

  63. Smirnov, D.G., Bezrukov, V.A., and Kurmaeva, N.M., Use of habitat and foraging time by females of Eptesicus nilssonii (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae), Russ. J. Theriol., 2021, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 1–10.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  64. Sokal, R.R. and Rohlf, F.J., Biometry, New York: Freeman, 1981.

    Google Scholar 

  65. Sokolov, A.Yu., On some finds of bats in the territory of the Bobrovsky district of the Voronezh oblast, Vopr. Estestvoznan., Lipetsk: Lipetsk. Gos. Pedagog. Univ., 2004, no. 12, pp. 21–22.

  66. Stone, E.L., Jones, G., and Harris, S., Conserving energy at a cost to biodiversity? Impacts of led lighting on bats, Global Change Biol., 2012, vol. 18, pp. 2458–2465.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  67. Stone, E.L., Harris, S., and Jones, G., Impacts of artificial lighting on bats: a review of challenges and solutions, Mamm. Biol., 2015, vol. 80, no. 3, pp. 213–219.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  68. Strelkov, P.P., Materials on wintering of bats in the European part of the USSR, Tr. Zool. Inst. Akad. Nauk SSSR, 1958, vol. 25, pp. 255–303.

    Google Scholar 

  69. Sukhoruchenko, S.V., Chronicle of the nature of the Khopersky State Reserve for 1997, Manuscript, Arkh. Khoper. Zapov., Registr, 1997, no. 54, pp. 116–117.

  70. Swift, S.M., Long-Eared Bats, Poyser Natural History, London: Poyser Ltd., 1998.

  71. Tyapkina, A.P. and Vyshegorodskikh, N.V., Species diversity of bats (Chiroptera) of the Orel oblast (family Vespertilionidae, genera Myotis and Nyctalus), Uch. Zap. Orlovsk. Gos. Univ., Ser.: Estestv., Tekh., Med. Nauki, 2015, vol. 2015, no. 4, pp. 206–212.

    Google Scholar 

  72. Vlaschenco, A., Kravchenco, K., Prylutska, A., Ivancheva, E., Sitnicova, E., and Michin, A., Structure of summer bat assemblages in forests in Russia, Turk. J. Zool., 2016, vol. 40, no. 6, pp. 876–893.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  73. Vyshegorodskikh, N.V., Species diversity of bats (Chiroptera) in the north-east of the Voronezh region, Uch. Zap. Orlovsk. Gos. Univ., Nauchn. Zh., 2015, no. 4 (67), рр. 135–149.

  74. Vyshegorodskikh, N.V., Species diversity of bats (Chiroptera) of the Orel oblast (family Vespertilionidae, genera Eptesicus and Vespertilio), Vestn. OrelGAU, 2016, vol. 6, no. 62, pp. 102–111.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  75. Walters, C.L., Freeman, R., Collen, A., Dietz, C., Fenton, M.B., et al., A continental-scale tool for acoustic identification of European bats, J. Appl. Ecol., 2012, vol. 49, pp. 1064–1074.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  76. Waters, D.A. and Gannon, W.L., Bat call libraries: management and potential use, in Bat Echolocation Research, Brigham, R.M., Kalko, E.K.V., Jones, G., Parsons, S., and Limpens, H.J.G.A., Eds., Austin: Bat Conservation International, 2004, pp. 150–157.

    Google Scholar 

  77. Zaitseva, E.V., Gorbachev, A.A., and Prokof’ev, I.L., Species diversity of bats (Microchiroptera) in the Bryansk oblast (according to the results of acoustic monitoring), Vestn. Bryansk. Gos. Univ., 2012, vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 79–83.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Penza State University, 440026, Penza, Russia

    D. G. Smirnov

  2. Voronezh State University, 394018, Voronezh, Russia

    A. S. Klimov, A. D. Numerov & E. I. Trufanova

Authors
  1. D. G. Smirnov
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. A. S. Klimov
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. A. D. Numerov
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. E. I. Trufanova
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to D. G. Smirnov.

Ethics declarations

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest. This article does not contain any studies involving animals performed by any of the authors.

Additional information

Translated by A. Barkhash

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Smirnov, D.G., Klimov, A.S., Numerov, A.D. et al. Experience in Using an Echo Meter Touch Ultrasonic Module in Studies of the Species Composition, Occurrence, and Biotopic Preferences of Bats (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) in Voronezh Oblast. Biol Bull Russ Acad Sci 50, 1511–1524 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1062359023070245

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1062359023070245

Keywords:

Search

Navigation