Reproductive seasonality, sex ratio and philopatry in Argentina's common vampire bats.

Autor: Delpietro HA; Servicio Nacional de Sanidad y Calidad Agroalimentaria (SENASA), Posadas, Argentina., Russo RG; Servicio Nacional de Sanidad y Calidad Agroalimentaria (SENASA), Posadas, Argentina., Carter GG; Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama, Republic of Panama., Lord RD; Formerly of the Pan American Health Organization, Reading, PA, USA., Delpietro GL; Servicio Nacional de Sanidad y Calidad Agroalimentaria (SENASA), Posadas, Argentina.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Royal Society open science [R Soc Open Sci] 2017 Apr 26; Vol. 4 (4), pp. 160959. Date of Electronic Publication: 2017 Apr 26 (Print Publication: 2017).
DOI: 10.1098/rsos.160959
Abstrakt: Common vampire bats ( Desmodus rotundus ) are a key rabies vector in South America. Improved management of this species requires long-term, region-specific information. To investigate patterns of demography and dispersal, we analysed 13 642 captures of common vampire bats in Northern Argentina from the period 1969-2004. In contrast with findings from more tropical regions, we found reproductive seasonality with peak pregnancy in September and peak lactation in February. Curiously, sex ratios were consistently male-biased both in maternity roosts and at foraging sites. Males comprised 57% of 9509 adults caught at night, 57% of 1078 juveniles caught at night, 57% of 603 juveniles caught in roosts during the day, and 55% of 103 newborns and mature fetuses. Most observed roosts were in man-made structures. Movements of 1.5-54 km were most frequent in adult males, followed by young males, adult females and young females. At night, males visited maternity roosts, and non-pregnant, non-lactating females visited bachelor roosts. Males fed earlier in the night. Finally, we report new longevity records for free-ranging vampire bats: 16 and 17 years of age for a female and male, respectively. Our results are consistent with model predictions that sex-biased movements might play a key role in rabies transmission between vampire bat populations.
Competing Interests: We have no competing interests.
Databáze: MEDLINE