Movement dynamics of the little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus) and the northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis) in Nova Scotia

Abstract

Two resident bat species in Nova Scotia are the little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus), an aerial hawker, and the northern long-eared bat (M. septentrionalis), a forest gleaner. Little is known about their local movement patterns and response to deforestation in summer, and their migration between summering sites and swarming sites in fall. A study was conducted near a newly constructed wind farm in Nova Scotia, for which forest was cleared, to make inferences on variable, inter-specific effects of ecosystem alterations. A second study was conducted to make inferences on migration between summer- and swarming sites, using stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen in bat fur. The results indicate that both species are impacted differently by deforestation due to their different foraging and roosting requirements. Migration in fall appears to be uniform in both species, where swarming sites are congregations of bats from several summering sites.