TY - JOUR
T1 - One model to rule them all
T2 - identifying priority bat habitats from multi-species habitat suitability models
AU - Gaulke, Sarah M.
AU - Cable, Ashleigh B.
AU - Hohoff, Tara C.
AU - Rogness, Brittany A.
AU - Davis, Mark A.
N1 - We thank the anonymous reviewers and the handling editor for their comments that substantially improved the manuscript. We thank the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and the USFWS for providing data used to develop models. In addition, we thank technicians who assisted in collecting the acoustic and capture data. Lastly, we thank everyone who provided mist‐netting locations across Illinois including B. J. Blankenship, T. C. Carter, M. T. Mangan, R. D. McClanahan, E. D. Okon, J. J. Sheets, M. A. Vukovich, and M. B. York‐Harris. The study was funded by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and the USFWS (grants: W‐194‐R‐1 and W‐194‐R‐2).
PY - 2023/2
Y1 - 2023/2
N2 - Bats are important components of global ecosystems, providing essential ecosystem services with substantial economic benefit. Yet North American bat populations have been negatively affected by numerous factors (e.g., disease, habitat loss, wind energy development) with compounding effects. Bats use habitats at a variety of scales, from small, isolated patches to large, contiguous corridors. Landscape-level research is necessary to identify important habitats, patches, and corridors to strategically target management interventions. We created habitat suitability models (HSMs) for hoary bats (Lasiurus cinereus), eastern red bats (L. borealis), and tri-colored bats (Perimyotis subflavus) across Illinois, USA, using species-specific landscape and climate variables. With the 3 models from this study and a previously published HSM for Indiana bats (Myotis sodalis), we stacked binary HSMs, thereby identifying priority conservation areas across Illinois. Species exhibited different distributional patterns and habitat preferences across Illinois. Multi-species HSMs highlight high quality habitat (i.e., ecologically important habitat that provides preferred resources for roosting, foraging, and raising young) in southern Illinois and along river riparian areas. This approach identified priority conservation areas mainly following hydrologic zones, which allows managers to strategically target restoration and conservation measures, invest funds in habitat likely to have high return-on-investment, and assist with decisions that affect bats (e.g., siting wind turbines, purchasing mitigation lands).
AB - Bats are important components of global ecosystems, providing essential ecosystem services with substantial economic benefit. Yet North American bat populations have been negatively affected by numerous factors (e.g., disease, habitat loss, wind energy development) with compounding effects. Bats use habitats at a variety of scales, from small, isolated patches to large, contiguous corridors. Landscape-level research is necessary to identify important habitats, patches, and corridors to strategically target management interventions. We created habitat suitability models (HSMs) for hoary bats (Lasiurus cinereus), eastern red bats (L. borealis), and tri-colored bats (Perimyotis subflavus) across Illinois, USA, using species-specific landscape and climate variables. With the 3 models from this study and a previously published HSM for Indiana bats (Myotis sodalis), we stacked binary HSMs, thereby identifying priority conservation areas across Illinois. Species exhibited different distributional patterns and habitat preferences across Illinois. Multi-species HSMs highlight high quality habitat (i.e., ecologically important habitat that provides preferred resources for roosting, foraging, and raising young) in southern Illinois and along river riparian areas. This approach identified priority conservation areas mainly following hydrologic zones, which allows managers to strategically target restoration and conservation measures, invest funds in habitat likely to have high return-on-investment, and assist with decisions that affect bats (e.g., siting wind turbines, purchasing mitigation lands).
KW - Indiana bat
KW - Lasiurus borealis
KW - Lasiurus cinereus
KW - Myotis sodalis
KW - Perimyotis subflavus
KW - bats
KW - eastern red bat
KW - habitat suitability models
KW - hoary bat
KW - tri-colored bat
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U2 - 10.1002/jwmg.22351
DO - 10.1002/jwmg.22351
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85145455926
SN - 0022-541X
VL - 87
JO - Journal of Wildlife Management
JF - Journal of Wildlife Management
IS - 2
M1 - e22351
ER -