Acoustic Surveys for Bats are Improved by Taking Habitat Type into Account

Abstract

ABSTRACT Passive monitoring of bat species via acoustics is a growing field and as a result there are various software programs available that allow for species identification. However, accuracy of these programs is variable and creating a local call library is essential when trying to identify acoustically similar species. In Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada, 3 Myotis species are difficult to distinguish acoustically. We created an echolocation call library from known Myotis evotis, M. lucifugus, and M. ciliolabrum flying in open spaces and near clutter to test whether or not recording in the bats' local habitat type improved call library quality and identification accuracy. Bat calls recorded within open spaces (coulees) differed from those recorded near cluttered spaces (tree edges) for M. ciliolabrum and M. lucifugus. Accuracy of species identification also increased when we used models based on bat calls recorded in cluttered habitats. Using a simple model with recordings from different habitat types within a study site, we were able to improve identification accuracy and model performance. © 2019 The Wildlife Society.

Keywords

• automated identification
• bats
• echolocation
• habitat type
• Myotis
• surveys