Nocturnality under the midnight sun: behavioural adaptations of the little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus) at 60°N latitude
Date
2013-09-16
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Northern environments are highly dynamic with pronounced seasons and a large annual range in photoperiod. As latitude increases, summer ambient temperature is cooler and summer days lengthen. The goal of my research was to investigate how a hibernating, nocturnal mammal behaves at northern latitudes with the combination of short summers and short summer nights. I investigated the behaviour of Myotis lucifugus at 60°N in the Northwest Territories, Canada. I assessed the effects of cool ambient temperatures on the timing of hibernation and reproduction, nightly activity, and foraging efficiency compared to southern populations. I found that
M. lucifugus exit hibernation at cool ambient temperatures, exhibit delayed parturition, adjust their foraging behaviour to capitalize on reduced night length, and have higher foraging rates (i.e. reduced prey search time) which allow them to gain sufficient pre-hibernation mass. I suggest these adaptations allow populations to persist at northern latitudes.
Description
Keywords
Ecology
Citation
Reimer, J. (2013). Nocturnality under the midnight sun: behavioural adaptations of the little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus) at 60°N latitude (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/27111