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Foraging ecology of Leisler's bat (Nyctalus leisleri) at two sites in southern Britain

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 October 1999

Dean Waters
Affiliation:
School of Biology, The Louis Compton Miall Building, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, U.K.
Gareth Jones
Affiliation:
School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Woodland Road, Bristol BS8 1UG, U.K.
Mick Furlong
Affiliation:
School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Woodland Road, Bristol BS8 1UG, U.K.
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Abstract

Leisler's bat Nyctalus leisleri was studied at sites around Bristol and Kent in southern Britain. Its diet was studied by faecal analysis, and habitat use was monitored by radio-telemetry and time-expanding bat-detectors. The diet, which varied between the two sites and also with the season, consisted primarily of small Nematoceran Diptera plus smaller numbers of Coleoptera and Lepidoptera. Foraging ranges were relatively large – bats flew a mean maximum distance of 4.2 km from the roost. Minimum area convex polygons enclosed an average of 7.4 km2, but were up to 18.4 km2. Bats significantly preferred foraging in areas of woodland and along scrub-lined roads in Kent, but over pasture around Bristol. Urban and arable areas were avoided at both sites. Bat-detector transects showed a significant preference for bats to forage along woodland margins.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 1999 The Zoological Society of London

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