A car-based monitoring method reveals new information on bat populations and distributions in Ireland

Animal Conservation

Volumn 14, Issue 6, 2011, Pages 642-651

  Roche, N ^a   Langton, S ^b   Aughney, T ^a   Russ, J M ^c   Marnell, F ^d   Lynn, D ^d   Catto, C ^c  

^a Bat Conservation Ireland   (Ireland)

^b Steve Langton Statistical Consultancy   (United Kingdom)

^c BAT CONSERVATION TRUST   (United Kingdom)

^d National Parks and Wildlife Service Ireland   (Ireland)

Author keywords

Bat population; Leisler's; Microchiroptera; Pipistrelle; Population trend; Red Alert

Indexed keywords

BAT; BIOMONITORING; DEMOGRAPHIC SURVEY; POPULATION DISTRIBUTION; SOFTWARE; SPECIES CONSERVATION; TREND ANALYSIS; VOCALIZATION;

IRELAND;

MICROCHIROPTERA; PIPISTRELLUS PIPISTRELLUS; PIPISTRELLUS PYGMAEUS; VESPERTILIONIDAE;

EID: 84155189222     PISSN: 13679430     EISSN: 14691795     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-1795.2011.00470.x     Document Type: Article

References (42)

1. Agnelli, P, Martinoli, A., Patriarca, E., Russo, D., Scaravelli, D. & Genovesi, P. (Eds) (2006). Guidelines for bat monitoring: methods for the study and conservation of bats in Italy. Rome: Quaderni di Conservazioni della Natura 19.
2. Allen, P., Forsyth, I., Hale, P. & Rogers, S. (2000). Bats in Northern Ireland. Ir. Nat. J.1-33. Special Zoological Supplement 2000.
3. Baillie, S.R., Marchant, J.H., Leech, D.I., Joys, A.C., Noble, D.G., Barimore, C., Downie, I.S., Grantham, M.J., Risely, K. & Robinson, R.A. (2009). Breeding birds in the wider countryside: their conservation status 2008. Research Report 516. BTO, Thetford.
4. Bat Conservation Trust (2009). National Bat Monitoring Programme. Annual Report 2009. BCT, London.
5. Battersby, J. (2010) (comp) Guidelines for surveillance and monitoring of European bats. EUROBATS Publication Series No. 5. UNEP/EUROBATS Secretariat, Bonn, Germany.
6. Buckland, S.T., Magurran, A.E., Green, R.E. & Fewster, R.M. (2005). Monitoring change in biodiversity through composite indices. Philos. T. Roy. Soc. B360, 243-254.
7. Catto, C., Russ, J. & Langton, S. (2003). Development of a car survey monitoring protocol for the Republic of Ireland. Prepared on behalf of the Heritage Council by the Bat Conservation Trust UK, The Heritage Council, Ireland.
8. Davidson-Watts, I., Walls, S. & Jones, G. (2006). Differential habitat selection by Pipistrellus pipistrellus and Pipistrellus pygmaeus identifies distinct conservation needs for cryptic species of echolocating bat. Biol. Conserv.133, 118-127.
9. Dietz, C., von Helverson, O. & Nill, D. (2007). Bats of Britain, Europe and northwest Africa. London: A&C Black Publishers.
10. Evans, P.G.H. & Hammond, P.S. (2004). Monitoring cetaceans in European waters. Mamm. Rev.34, 131-156.
11. Fewster, R.M., Buckland, S.T., Siriwardena, G.M., Baillie, S.R. & Wilson, J.D. (2000). Analysis of population trends for farmland birds using generalized additive models. Ecology81, 1970-1984.
12. Harris, S. & Yalden, D.W.(Eds) (2008). Mammals of the British Isles: handbook. 4th edn. Southampton: The Mammal Society.
13. Hayden, T. & Harrington, R. (2000). Exploring Irish mammals. Dublin: Town House.
14. Houlding, S. (2000). Practical geostatistics: Modeling and spatial analysis. New York: Springer.
15. Howell, J.C. (1951). The roadside census as a method for measuring bird populations. Auk68, 334-357.
16. Kingsford, R.T. & Porter, J.L. (2009). Aerial surveys of waterbird populations in Eastern Australia. Wildl. Res.36, 29-40.
17. Langbein, J., Hutchings, M.R., Harris, S., Stoate, C., Tapper, S.C. & Wray, S. (1999). Techniques for assessing the abundance of brown hares Lepus europaeus. Mamm. Rev.29, 93-116.
18. Lewis, T. & Stephenson, J.W. (1966). The permeability of artificial windbreaks and the distribution of flying insects in the leeward sheltered zone. Ann. Appl. Biol.58, 355-363.
19. Limpens, H.J.G.A. & Kapteyn, K. (1991). Bats, their behaviour and linear landscape elements. Myotis29, 39-48.
20. Marchant, J.H., Wilson, A.M., Chamberlain, D.E., Gregory, R.D. & Baillie, S.R. (1997). Opportunistic bird species - enhancements for the monitoring of populations. BTO Research Report No. 176. BTO, Thetford.
21. McCullagh, P. & Nelder, J.A. (1989). Generalized linear models. 2nd edn. London: Chapman & Hall.
22. O'Donnell, C.F.J. & Langton, S. (2003). Power to detect trends in abundance of long-tailed bats (Chalinolobus tuberculatus) using counts on line transects. Science for Conservation, 224. Wellington: Department of Conservation. Available at
23. O'Shea, T.J. & Bogan, M.A.(Eds) (2003) Monitoring trends in bat populations of the United States and Territories: problems and prospects. U.S. Geological Survey, Biological Resources Discipline, Information and Technology Report, Fort Collins, CO, USA. USGS/BRD/ITR 2003, 0003, 274pp.
24. O'Sullivan, P. (1994). Bats in Ireland. Ir. Nat. J.24, 1-21. Special Zoological Supplement.
25. Pardieck, K.L. & Peterjohn, B.G. (2005). Monitoring Puerto Rican avifauna using roadside surveys. USDA For. Serv. Gen. Technol. Rep.191, 937-943.
26. Russ, J. (1999). The Bats of Britain and Ireland: echolocation calls, sound analysis, and species identification. Powys: Alana Books.
27. Russ, J.M., O'Neill, J.K. & Montgomery, W.I. (1998). Nathusius' pipistrelle bats (Pipistrellus nathusii, Keyserling and Basius 1839), breeding in Ireland. J. Zool. (Lond.)245, 345-349.
28. Russ, J.M. & Montgomery, W.I. (2002). Habitat associations of bats in Northern Ireland: Implications for conservation. Biol. Conserv. 108, 49-58.
29. Russ, J.M., Briffa, M. & Montgomery, W.I. (2003). Seasonal patterns in activity and habitat use by bats (Pipistrellus spp. and Nyctalus leisleri) in Northern Ireland, determined using a driven transect. J. Zool. (Lond.)259, 289-299.
30. Russ, J.M., Catto, C. & Wembridge, D. (2006). The Bats and Roadside Mammals Survey 2005. Final Report on First Year of Study, London, UK. BCT/MTUK.
31. Russ, J.M., Briggs, P. & Wembridge, D. (2007). The Bats and Roadside Mammals Survey 2007. Final Report on the Third Year of Study, London, UK. BCT/MTUK.
32. Russo, D. & Jones, G. (2002). Identification of twenty-two bat species (Mammalia: Chiroptera) from Italy by analysis of time-expanded recordings of echolocation calls. J. Zool. (Lond.)258, 91-103.
33. Sattler, T., Bontadina, F., Hirzel, A.H. & Arlettaz, R. (2007). Ecological niche modelling of two cryptic bat species calls for a reassessment of their conservation status. J. Appl. Ecol.44, 1188-1199.
34. Shiel, C.B. & Fairley, J.S. (1998). Activity of Leisler's bat Nyctalus leisleri (Kuhl) in the field in south-east County Wexford, as revealed by a bat detector. Biol. Environ.98B, 105-112.
35. Stokes, E.J., Strindberg, S., Bakabana, P.C., Elkan, P.W., Iyenguet, F.C., Madzoké, B., Malanda, G.A.F., Mowawa, B.S., Moukoumbou, C., Ouakabadio, F.K. & Rainey, H.J. (2010). Monitoring great ape and elephant abundance at large spatial scales: measuring effectiveness of a conservation landscape. PLoS ONE 5, 1-18.
36. Tuttle, M.D. (2003). Estimating population sizes of hibernating bats in caves and mines. In Monitoring trends in bat populations of the United States and territories: problems and prospects. USGS/BRD/ITR 2003, 0003: 31-39. O'Shea, T.J. & Bogan, M.A. (Eds). Fort Collins: US Geological Survey, Biological Resources Discipline, Information and Technology Report.
37. Van Strien, A., Pannekoek, J., Hagemeijer, W. & Verstrael, T. (2004). A log linear Poisson regression method to analyse bird monitoring data. In Bird Numbers 1995, Proceedings of the International Conference and 13th Meeting of the European Bird Census Council, Pärnu, Estonia. Anselin, A. (Ed.). Bird Census News, 13, 33-39.
38. Vaughan, N., Jones, G. & Harris, S. (1997). Habitat use by bats (Chiroptera) assessed by means of a broad-band acoustic method. J. App. Ecol.34, 716-730.
39. Verboom, B. & Spoelstra, K. (1999). Effects of food abundance and wind on the use of tree lines by an insectivorous bat, Pipistrellus pipistrellus. Can. J. Zool.77, 1393-1401.
40. Warren, R.D. & Witter, M.S. (2002). Monitoring trends in bat populations through roost surveys: methods and data from Rhinolophus hipposideros. Biol. Conserv. 105, 255-261.
41. Webbon, C.C., Baker, P.J. & Harris, S. (2004). Faecal density counts for monitoring changes in red fox numbers in rural Britain. J. App. Ecol.41, 768-779.
42. Zuur, A.F., Ieno, E.N., Walker, N.J., Saveliev, A.A. & Smith, G.M. (2008). Mixed effects models and extensions in ecology with R. New York: Springer.