Roosting behavior and roost selection by Epomophorus gambianus (Pteropodidae) in a west African rural landscape

Urbanization is driving many species to inhabit modified landscapes, but
our understanding of how species respond to this remains limited. Bats are
particularly vulnerable due to their life-history traits but have received
little attention. We describe the roosting behavior and roost site
selection, including maternity roosts, for the Gambian epauletted fruit
bat (Epomophorus gambianus) within a modified forest-savannah transition
ecological zone in Ghana, West Africa. We compared characteristics of
roost and non-roost sites to test the hypotheses that roost site selection
is non-random and that maternity roost site selection differs from
non-maternity roosts. Male bats were more likely to switch roost (mean=
0.49 ± 0.23 bat days, N=23) than females (mean= 0.33 ± 0.18 bat days, N=7)
while linear distances between roosts used by males (255 ± 254 m) were
significantly longer than for females (102 ± 71m) (t = 4.50, df =86, P
<0.0001). Roost trees were more likely than non-roost trees to be
bigger, taller, occur closer to buildings, and be in relatively open and
less mature plots; maintaining such trees in modified landscapes could
benefit the species. Lactating bats selected a subset of roost trees but
significantly, those that contained a greater number of bats, a strategy
which may reflect predator avoidance, or other social co-operation
benefits. Although there was a preference for five tree species, other
trees with preferred characteristics were also used. Our findings
contribute to the understanding of how species utilize modified
landscapes, which is important in the management of biodiversity in the
Anthropocene.