Body mass changes in male Daubenton's bats Myotis daubentonii (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) during the seasonal activity period
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Jorge A. Encarnação
Body mass changes of adult and juvenile male Daubenton’s bats were studied in a summer habitat in Hesse (Germany) in the years 1998-2001. Animals from the resident population were regularly captured along the flight path from April to October, and body mass was determined using a digital balance. Body mass of adult individuals differed significantly among fortnightly periods (Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA by ranks: H = 141.75, p < 0.001). Body mass increased significantly from the second half of April (median: 7.0 g) to the first half of May (median: 7.8 g). Between the second half of May and the first half of August, median body mass fluctuated between 7.8 g and 8.3 g. From the second half of July (median: 7.9 g) to the second half of August (median: 8.4 g), and the second half of September (median: 9.3 g) body mass again significantly increased. The highest median body mass (9.6 g) was recorded in the second half of October. Median body mass of juvenile males ranged between 6.5 g in the first half of July and 8.5 g in the second half of October. Differences in body mass over the studied period were significant (H = 21.70, p < 0.01). During the months July, August, and September, body mass of adult males was significantly higher than that of juveniles, whereas in October the difference was no longer of statistical significance. It is suggested that the decrease in body mass observed in some adult males in September was related to their reproductive activity.
Copyright 2004, Walter de Gruyter
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Articles in the same Issue
- Le Havre 2002: the IXth European Bat Research Symposium
- Morphometrics and ecology of Myotis cf. punicus (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) in Corsica
- Ecomorphometry of Myotis daubentonii and M. lucifugus (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) – a Palearctic-Nearctic comparison
- Postnatal growth in Myotis blythii (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae)
- Body mass changes in male Daubenton's bats Myotis daubentonii (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) during the seasonal activity period
- Subspecific structure of Myotis daubentonii (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) and composition of the "daubentonii" species group
- Variability in echolocation call design of 26 Swiss bat species: consequences, limits and options for automated field identification with a synergetic pattern recognition approach
- Reproductive cycle in Pipistrellus kuhlii (Chiroptera,Vespertilionidae) in western Iran
- The roost preference of Nyctalus noctula (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) in summer and the ecological background of their urbanization
- Bats, climate, and air microorganisms in a Romanian cave
- The importance of small cellars to bat hibernation in Poland
- Effect of barn conversion on bat roost sites in Hertfordshire, England
- Flight activity and habitat use of Pipistrellus pygmaeus in a floodplain forest
- Summer distribution of the Pond bat Myotis dasycneme (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) in the west of Flanders (Belgium) with regard to water quality
- Radiotracking of Myotis myotis (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae) in South Tyrol and implications for its conservation
- Diet and prey selection in the Mediterranean horseshoe bat Rhinolophus euryale (Chiroptera, Rhinolophidae) during the pre-breeding season
- The importance of woodland for Rhinolophus hipposideros (Chiroptera, Rhinolophidae) in Austria
- Tunnels as a possibility to connect bat habitats
- Control region variability of the mitochondrial DNA of Pipistrellus nathusii (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae): First results of a population genetic study
- Bat species and conservation issues in the castle Grad na Goričkem (NE Slovenia)
- Aerial deposition of cadmium before and after the closure of an oil-fired power station in the vicinity of two nursery roosts of Rhinolophus ferrumequinum (Chiroptera, Rhinolophidae)
- Bat activity in coniferous forest areas and the impact of air pollution
