Data from: Effects of land-use change on functional and taxonomic diversity of Neotropical bats

Human land-use changes are particularly extensive in tropical regions,
representing one of the greatest threats to terrestrial biodiversity and a
key research topic in conservation. However, studies considering the
effects of different types of anthropogenic disturbance on the functional
dimension of biodiversity in human-modified landscapes are rare. Here, we
obtained data through an extensive review of peer-reviewed articles and
compared 30 Neotropical bat assemblages in well-preserved primary forest
and four different human-disturbed habitats in terms of their functional
and taxonomic diversity. We found that disturbed habitats that are
structurally less similar to primary forest (pasture, cropland and
early-stage secondary forest) were characterized by a lower functional and
taxonomic diversity, as well as community level-functional uniqueness.
These habitats generally retained fewer species that perform different
ecological functions compared to higher-quality landscape matrices, such
as agroforestry. According to functional trait composition, different bat
ensembles respond differently to landscape change, negatively affecting
mainly gleaning insectivorous bats in pasture, narrow-range species in
cropland, and heavier animalivorous bats in secondary forest. Although our
results highlight the importance of higher-quality matrix habitats to
support elevated functional and taxonomic bat diversity, the conservation
of bat species that perform different ecological functions in the mosaic
of human-modified habitats also depends on the irreplaceable conservation
value of well-preserved primary forests. Our study based on a pooled
analysis of individual studies provides novel insights into the effects of
different human-modified habitats on Neotropical bat assemblages.