Bat assemblages inhabiting two discrete karst areas in north Vietnam were sampled from 2006-2008. Inventory studies indicate that Vietnamese karst areas with intact primary forest harbour a large proportion of the national bat fauna with levels of species richness which may greatly exceed those of other forest types in-country. Forests on karst ridgetops in degraded areas are capable of supporting high bat species richness at low abundances and their persistence as linear tracts and latticeworks of forest in anthropogenic landscapes may provide corridors for the movement of forest-dependent bats. Reproductive studies demonstrate that the timing of major reproductive events (pregnancy, lactation and weaning) coincide for two pteropodids and for 26 species in three insectivorous bat families. The high temporal congruence in reproduction and climatic homogeneity of north Vietnam (18-23°N) suggests that these results may have wider applicability. Echolocation studies involving 30 insectivorous species indicate that correct acoustic identification of free-flying bats is feasible. Comparisons of conventional capture methods with simultaneous acoustic sampling in a variety of karst habitats demonstrate that acoustic methods are indispensable in maximising inventory completeness in assemblage studies. Ecomorphological studies of 37 bat species indicate that analysis of wing morphology is useful in predicting foraging habitats. Results support the hypothesis that bat species highly adapted to foraging in the forest interior are negatively affected by forest degradation. Three bat species new to science are described. Factors associated with extinction risk in bats are reviewed and recommendations for conservation management and further research are provided.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:509173 |
| Date | January 2009 |
| Creators | Furey, Neil M. |
| Publisher | University of Aberdeen |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://digitool.abdn.ac.uk:80/webclient/DeliveryManager?pid=33557 |
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