NUTRlTlONAL HABITS OF THE NOCTULE BAT NYCTALUS NOCTULA (SCHREBER, 17i4) IN SWITZERLAND MYOTIS

• Main Author: Sandra Gloor Hans-peter B. Stutz
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Subjects: S. 231-242; Nyctalus noctula
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.664.7367; http://swild.eu/publi/Gloor_Myo1995.pdf

Abst rac t : During one season (from April to November 1989) faecal pellets of the Noc-tule bat Nyctalus noctula were collected in three roosts in buildings in villages. At seven roosts in trees in the town of Zürich, Noctule bats were caught every two weeks from April to November and faecal pellets are collected. The faecal pellets are analysed both in terms of quality and quantity and compared from a regional and seasonal point of view. Nyctalus noctula preferably feeds on Trichoptera and Diptera (Chironomidae, Anisopodidae, Tipulidae). These insects fly in swarms so the Noctule bat can hunt and catch a lot of prey in very short time: this can be termed filter feeding. It is surprising, that the Noctule bat with its powerful and strong theeth hunts such soft and small in-sects. In spring and autumn, though, when larger insects, such as Coleoptera (e. g. Melolontha sp. in spring, Geotrupes sp, in autumn) are frequent and swarming insects (e. g. Trichoptera) are rare, the larger insects are also hunted by the Noctule bat, a fact that points to an opportunistic hunting strategy. BAND 32-33