Data from: The first cut it the deepest: the impact of habitat management and woody densification on arthropod and bat communities in an African savanna

This repository contain data associated with the publication: The first cut it the deepest: the impact of habitat management and woody densification on arthropod and bat communities in an African savanna. Please find the abstract below.

Habitat management is a widely used strategy in savanna ecosystem management, altering habitat structure and potentially impacting other trophic levels, such as arthropods that are vital to insectivorous bat communities. Understanding these management-driven interactions is critical for biodiversity conservation in savannas. Thus, our study examined the effects of five habitat management approaches on vegetation structure, and their resultant influences on arthropod abundance and species richness, and bat activity and species richness in MalaMala Game Reserve, South Africa. Vegetation structure was quantified through assessments of tree density and grass height, while bat activity was monitored acoustically, and arthropods were assessed using light traps. Habitat management practices significantly influenced habitat structure, leading to contrasting responses in arthropod and bat communities. Specifically, arthropod abundance and species richness increased with woody plant cover, whereas bat activity decreased as woody cover increased. Areas with low tree density and short grass height supported high bat activity, but had the lowest arthropod abundance and species richness, likely due to bats' mobility and adaptable foraging behaviors. In contrast, intermediate woody cover and taller grass supported more diverse arthropod communities, although bat activity was moderate in these areas. Areas with dense woody cover yielded the highest arthropod richness but the lowest bat activity, yet supported clutter-specialist species like Rhinolophus smithersi, which prefer dense vegetation for foraging. Our findings highlight the nuanced interactions within savanna ecosystems and the importance of maintaining heterogeneous landscapes possessing habitats that represent a range of vegetation structure to support diverse arthropod and bat communities. Using a variety of habitat management practices across the landscape that create habitats that vary in woody plant density and herbaceous layer height can enhance arthropod abundance and bat diversity at the landscape scale. This study underscores the complex relationships between vegetation structure, prey availability, and bat foraging strategies, providing critical insights for biodiversity conservation in savanna ecosystems