Sensory ecology of the frog-eating bat, Trachops cirrhosus, from DNA metabarcoding and behavior

Metabarcoding of prey DNA from fecal samples can be used to design
behavioral experiments to study the foraging behavior and sensory ecology
of predators. The frog-eating bat, Trachops cirrhosus, eavesdrops on the
mating calls of its anuran prey. We captured wild T. cirrhosus and
identified prey remains in the bats' fecal samples using DNA
metabarcoding of two gene regions (CO1, 16S). Bats were preying on frogs
previously unknown in their diet, such as species in the genus
Pristimantis which occurred in 29% of T. cirrhosus samples. 23% of samples
also contained DNA of Anolis lizards. We additionally report apparently
rare predation events on hummingbirds and heterospecific bats. We used
results from metabarcoding to design acoustic and 3D model stimuli to
present to bats in behavioral experiments. We show predatory responses by
T. cirrhosus to the calls of the frog Pristimantis taeniatus and to the
rustling sounds of anoles moving through leaf-litter, as well as attacks
on a stuffed hummingbird and a plastic anole model. The combination of
species-specific dietary information from metabarcoding analyses with
behavioral responses to prey cues provides a unique window into the
foraging ecology of predators that are difficult to observe in the wild.