A Preliminary study on bats in a Small-scale Mining Site in South central Mindanao, Philippines

Land-use change and its associated activities have been strongly linked to the decline of many bat species populations glob- ally. This study was conducted with a primary goal to document the bat diversity on a small scale mining site in Baranggay Kinayao, Bagumbayan, Sultan, Kudarat, Philippines. A total of 227 individuals were identified, representing two families (Pteropodidae and Hipposideridae), eight genera, and eight species of bats. Three species are endemic to the Philippines namely Haplonycteris fischeri, Ptenochirus jagori, and the Vulnerable Megaerops wetmorei. Pteropodid Cynopterus brachyotis were found to be the most dominant and tolerant species in the area compared to all species combined. In addition, a significant decrease in bat activity was noted during active blasting period, as evidenced by a low capture rate compared to non-blasting period. This preliminary finding suggests the need for further exploration of how human-induced noise increase the effects of the land-use change to bat diversity and population

DarkCideS 1.0, a global database for bats in karsts and caves

Tanalgo, Krizler C., Tabora, John Aries G., de Oliveira, Hernani Fernandes Magalhães, Haelewaters, Danny, Beranek, Chad T., Otálora-Ardila, Aída, Bernard, Enrico, Gonçalves, Fernando, Eriksson, Alan, Donnelly, Melissa, González, Joel Monzón, Ramos, Humberto Fernández, Rivas, Alberto Clark, Webala, Paul W., Deleva, Stanimira, Dalhoumi, Ridha, Maula, Jaycelle, Lizarro, Dennis, Aguirre, Luis F., Bouillard, Nils, Quibod, Ma. Niña Regina M., Barros, Jennifer, Turcios-Casco, Manfredo Alejandro, Martínez, Marcio, Ordoñez-Mazier, Diego Iván, Orellana, José Alejandro Soler, Ordoñez-Trejo, Eduardo J., Ordoñez, Danny, Chornelia, Ada, Lu, Jian Mei, Xing, Chen, Baniya, Sanjeev, Muylaert, Renata L., Dias-Silva, Leonardo Henrique, Ruadreo, Nittaya, Hughes, Alice Catherine (2022): DarkCideS 1.0, a global database for bats in karsts and caves. Scientific Data 9 (1): 155, DOI: 10.1038/s41597-022-01234-4, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41597-022-01234-

Cave-dwelling bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) and conservation concerns in South central Mindanao, Philippines

The stable microclimate in caves provides a relatively constant habitat for many bat species in the Philippines, but human encroachment continues to disrupt this habitat and imperil many of the species roosting in the caves.  In South central Mindanao, the diversity and conservation status of cave bats remain undocumented and unexplored.  We employed mist-netting to capture bats from five different caves within the town of Kabacan, northern Cotabato, Philippines.  A total of 14 bat species were identified including the Philippine endemics Hipposideros pygmaeus and Ptenochirus jagori and the threatened Megaerops wetmorei. However, despite the declining conservation status of the bats, local disturbance such as bat hunting for bush meat and unregulated tourism are currently taking place in the caves.  Large species such as Eonycteris spelaea and Rousettus amplexicaudatus are killed almost every day for food and trade.  Therefore, the high species richness, and the presence of endemic and threatened species coupled with the occurrence of anthropogenic disturbances in caves suggests the need for an urgent and effective conservation intervention involving the local government and public community. </div

Bat cave vulnerability index (BCVI): A holistic rapid assessment tool to identify priorities for effective cave conservation in the tropics

The identification of important habitats for wildlife is essential in order to plan and promote strategies for long-term effective conservation. Caves and subterranean habitats are frequently overlooked habitats with diverse communities, which are frequently endemic to a region, karst outcrop or even a single cave. These cave species include a wide range of taxa adapted to cave environments. Within cave systems, bats are key providers of energy for other cave-dependent species. However, identifying caves for conservation prioritisation requires an understanding of cave-dwelling species diversity, patterns of endemism, and conservation status, in addition to a standard mechanism to evaluate risk. In this paper, we present the ‘Bat Cave Vulnerability Index’ (BCVI) as a standard index for evaluating bat caves for conservation prioritisation by determining Biotic Potential (BP) and Biotic Vulnerability (BV) of caves. The Biotic Potential is represented by various species diversity and rarity measurements. The Biotic Vulnerability is represented by the cave geophysical characteristics and human-induced disturbance present. Pilot testing in the southern Philippines has demonstrated that the index is an effective and practicable method to identify bat caves for conservation prioritisation. The biotic potential variables assess the presence of endemic, rare, and threatened bat species and assays the priority level based on an equation. Relative risk and vulnerability were assayed using landscape vulnerability variables, which showed anthropogenic activities were important factors in conservation prioritisation. The application and mechanism of the index potentially provides a valuable, rapid and simple assessment tool in cave conservation with special relevance to bat diversity and vulnerability. Furthermore, the multiple and holistic criteria of the BCVI, and the accessible information for both biotic and landscape features can be adapted to prioritise caves in a wider scale in the tropics, and in other regions with di

Selecting safe zone for threatened species conservation: a case study of a watershed in the southern Philippines

ABSTRACTThe Philippine Department of Environment and Natural Resources has protocols for identifying landscapes for conservation but lacks clear guidelines for mapping areas of interest. To augment the procedure, we explored using Multi-Criteria Overlay Raster Analysis that scores the best available data from a watershed to identify potential Critical Habitat or Protected Areas. The algorithm deducts potential areas for wildlife habitation from areas that contribute to conservation conflicts, resulting in a potential ‘safe zone’ for conservation. The framework is applied to a case study in a watershed in the southern Philippines and produces a gradient score to determine the most suitable to least suitable areas for conservation. By using the best available data and local perspectives, the synthesized methodological framework was found to be useful in the decision-making process

DarkCideS 1.0 : a global database for bats in karsts and caves

Understanding biodiversity patterns as well as drivers of population declines, and range losses provides crucial baselines for monitoring and conservation. However, the information needed to evaluate such trends remains unstandardised and sparsely available for many taxonomic groups and habitats, including the cave-dwelling bats and cave ecosystems. We developed the DarkCideS 1.0 ( https://darkcides.org/ ), a global database of bat caves and species synthesised from publicly available information and datasets. The DarkCideS 1.0 is by far the largest database for cave-dwelling bats, which contains information for geographical location, ecological status, species traits, and parasites and hyperparasites for 679 bat species are known to occur in caves or use caves in part of their life histories. The database currently contains 6746 georeferenced occurrences for 402 cave-dwelling bat species from 2002 cave sites in 46 countries and 12 terrestrial biomes. The database has been developed to be collaborative and open-access, allowing continuous data-sharing among the community of bat researchers and conservation biologists to advance bat research and comparative monitoring and prioritisation for conservation.publishe

DarkCideS 1.0, a global database for bats in karsts and caves.

Understanding biodiversity patterns as well as drivers of population declines, and range losses provides crucial baselines for monitoring and conservation. However, the information needed to evaluate such trends remains unstandardised and sparsely available for many taxonomic groups and habitats, including the cave-dwelling bats and cave ecosystems. We developed the DarkCideS 1.0 ( https://darkcides.org/ ), a global database of bat caves and species synthesised from publicly available information and datasets. The DarkCideS 1.0 is by far the largest database for cave-dwelling bats, which contains information for geographical location, ecological status, species traits, and parasites and hyperparasites for 679 bat species are known to occur in caves or use caves in part of their life histories. The database currently contains 6746 georeferenced occurrences for 402 cave-dwelling bat species from 2002 cave sites in 46 countries and 12 terrestrial biomes. The database has been developed to be collaborative and open-access, allowing continuous data-sharing among the community of bat researchers and conservation biologists to advance bat research and comparative monitoring and prioritisation for conservation