How bats escape the competitive exclusion principle - Seasonal shift from intraspecific to interspecific competititon drives space use in a bat ensemble

We conducted playback experiments directed towards foraging Nyctalus noctula at waterbodies in the Uckermark / Germany in early and late summer 2016. Playback files consisted of superstimuli of hunting calls of conspecific Nyctalus noctula or heterospecific Pipistrellus nathusii. We recorded the reaction of hunting Nyctalus noctula towards these playbacks by means of ultrasonic activity. We simultaneously caught insects during the playback sessions using UV-traps. Data was analysed to test if the interaction of season and playback type influenced activity of hunting Nyctalus noctula, and if seasonal patterns could be explained by insect abundance.