Bats in Niepolomicka Forest

The objective of the study was to recognise the species composition of bats in two forest stands that differ in terms of habitat type and age class. The study was carried out in the Niepolomicka Forest (southern Poland). An ultrasound 'time-expansion' processing system with Pettersson D240x detector was used to identify bat species by their echolocation signals employing SonoBat v.2.9.7 software to analyse bioacoustic spectrograms. We set up 36 recording points located in: old-growth and young plantations within the hygric mixed coniferous forest type (Pino-Quercetum) and hygric deciduous forest type (Tilio-Carpinetum). The measurements were carried out in July 2013, from 8:30 PM to 0.00 AM. The occurrence of nine species of bats were documented (tab.) of which Pipistrellus pygmaeus, P. pipistrellus, Barbastella barbastellus, Myotis myotis, M. emarginatus, and M. daubentonii had not been previously recorded in the Niepolomicka Forest. P pipistrellus, M. emarginatus, M. daubentonii, and E. serotinus were recorded only in old-growths, whereas Nyctalus leisleri, N. noctula, and P pygmaeus were found within both habitat types. Only two of the species identified in the study (M. myotis, and B. barbastellus) occurred both in the plantations and old-growth of hygric deciduous forest as well as in hygric mixed coniferous forest. None of the detected species was recorded exclusively in old-growth of hygric mixed coniferous forest type. The occurrence of a given bat species in the studied forest habitats and age classes of forest stands can be associated with the availability of prey, divergent feeding strategies, and with the adaptations affecting the nature of flight and ways of locating prey. The obtained results widened the knowledge of the species composition of bat fauna in the Niepolomicka Forest. At least 13 bat species live here. Apart from the nine species found in this study, four other species were found there in past years (Plecotus auritus, M. bechsteinii, M. brandtii and M. mystacinus).