Generational shift in the migratory common noctule bat: first-year males lead the way to hibernacula at higher latitudes ...

• Main Authors: Kravchenko, K. A., Vlaschenko, A. S., Lehnert, L. S., Courtiol, A., Voigt, C.C.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: Zenodo 2020
• Subjects: Biodiversity; Mammalia; Chiroptera; Chordata; Animalia; bats; bat; Nyctalus noctula
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13452976; https://zenodo.org/doi/10.5281/zenodo.13452976

(Uploaded by Plazi for the Bat Literature Project) Many migratory species have shifted their geographic distribution in response to climate change, yet the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood, particularly for mammals. We hypothesized that generational shifts are underlying the observed colonization of hibernation sites further north in a migratory bat, the common noctule ( Nyctalus noctula) . To evaluate our hypothesis, we collected long-term data on the migratory status and demography of common noctules in a recently colonized hibernation area. Based on isotopic data of 413 individuals, we observed a significant decline in the proportion of long-distance migrants from 2004 to 2015 for both sexes and across all age groups. Demographic data collected between 2007 and 2016 from 3394 individuals demonstrated that subadult males were more abundant during the early colonization stage, followed by a gradual shift to a more balanced age and sex composition. Our results suggest that the colonization of ...