It's more than just an ancient ruin . . .
Bats at Lamanai and Ka'Kabish
Dr. Brock Fenton - University of Western Ontario
Since about 1998, I have been making regular trips to Lamanai (and more recently Ka’Kabish) to learn more about the bats that occur there. As of May 2012, we caught or recorded 43 species of bats in these areas. By catching bats in mist nets or harp traps or by recording their echolocation calls, we have been able to assemble a picture of the bat fauna. But each year we find two or three species that we had not seen before. Based on recorded echolocation calls, one species of free-tailed bat (family Molossidae - in the genus Eumops) is a regular visitor, but we have yet to catch it.
My first trips to Lamanai were with some students and colleagues and we typically went with specific goals in mind, documenting what bats occur in the area, and use radio tags to follow them to their roosts. We also have recorded echolocation calls to assemble a library of which species says what. Several papers have emerged form this work (see below).
Since about 2005, these trips have turned into “no host, no agenda” research retreats that have seen up to 46 bat people and colleagues working out of Lamanai Outpost Lodge. We use the time to talk shop, about bats and echolocation, to extend our samples of bats, and plan further studies. Having a full week to interact is stimulating and enjoyable. We avoid the pressures associated with scheduled sessions at bat meetings, and use our time as the spirit moves us.
In late April and early May 2013, 46 of gathered at Lamanai. This time we used radio tags to follow proboscis bats (Rhynchonycteris naso) as they forage, recording their echolocation calls with an array of microphones to document how these bats adjust their fields of view when hunting. We also radio tracked woolly false vampire bats (Chrotopterus auritus) at Ka'Kabish. Here we are interested in where the bats roost, what they eat, and where they hunt. Others team members studied flight using a variety of approaches, and still others the use that bats make of flowers. We also use thermal imaging to look at the respiratory patterns of vampire bats (Desmodus rotundus - pictured above).
Bats are small, long-lived animals, that play a variety of roles in ecosystems like those around Lamanai and Ka’Kabish. We use our time with the bats and each other to come up with new ways of studying bats and better ways of gaining a perspective on how they “view” the world. We also will visit the local school to introduce the students there to the world of bats.
Dr. Brock Fenton - University of Western Ontario
Since about 1998, I have been making regular trips to Lamanai (and more recently Ka’Kabish) to learn more about the bats that occur there. As of May 2012, we caught or recorded 43 species of bats in these areas. By catching bats in mist nets or harp traps or by recording their echolocation calls, we have been able to assemble a picture of the bat fauna. But each year we find two or three species that we had not seen before. Based on recorded echolocation calls, one species of free-tailed bat (family Molossidae - in the genus Eumops) is a regular visitor, but we have yet to catch it.
My first trips to Lamanai were with some students and colleagues and we typically went with specific goals in mind, documenting what bats occur in the area, and use radio tags to follow them to their roosts. We also have recorded echolocation calls to assemble a library of which species says what. Several papers have emerged form this work (see below).
Since about 2005, these trips have turned into “no host, no agenda” research retreats that have seen up to 46 bat people and colleagues working out of Lamanai Outpost Lodge. We use the time to talk shop, about bats and echolocation, to extend our samples of bats, and plan further studies. Having a full week to interact is stimulating and enjoyable. We avoid the pressures associated with scheduled sessions at bat meetings, and use our time as the spirit moves us.
In late April and early May 2013, 46 of gathered at Lamanai. This time we used radio tags to follow proboscis bats (Rhynchonycteris naso) as they forage, recording their echolocation calls with an array of microphones to document how these bats adjust their fields of view when hunting. We also radio tracked woolly false vampire bats (Chrotopterus auritus) at Ka'Kabish. Here we are interested in where the bats roost, what they eat, and where they hunt. Others team members studied flight using a variety of approaches, and still others the use that bats make of flowers. We also use thermal imaging to look at the respiratory patterns of vampire bats (Desmodus rotundus - pictured above).
Bats are small, long-lived animals, that play a variety of roles in ecosystems like those around Lamanai and Ka’Kabish. We use our time with the bats and each other to come up with new ways of studying bats and better ways of gaining a perspective on how they “view” the world. We also will visit the local school to introduce the students there to the world of bats.
Recent Publications
Becker, Daniel J., Kelly A. Speer, Alexis M. Brown, M. Brock Fenton, Alex D. Washburne, Sonia Altizer, Daniel G. Streicker, Raina K. Plowright, Vladimir E. Chizhikov, Nancy B. Simmons, and Dmitriy V. Volokhov
2020 Ecological and evolutionary drivers of haemoplasma infection and bacterial genotype sharing in a Neotropical bat community." Molecular ecology 29(8): 1534-1549. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/mec.15422
Oelbaum, Phillip J., M. Brock Fenton, Nancy B. Simmons, and Hugh G. Broders
2019 Community Structure of a Neotropical bat fauna as revealed by stable isotope analysis: Not all species fit neatly into predicted guilds. BioTropica, vol. 51(5): 719-730. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/btp.12700
Ingala, Melissa R., Daniel J. Becker, Jacob Bak Holm, Karsten Kristiansen, Nancy B. Simmons
2019 Habitat fragmentation is associated with dietary shifts and microbiota variability in common vampire bats. Ecology and Evolution, vol. 9(11): 6508-6523. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ece3.5228
Walker, Faith M., Abby Tobin, Nancy B. Simmons, Colin J. Sobek, Daniel E. Sanchez, Carol L. Chambers, Viacheslav, Y. Fofanov
2019 A fecal sequel: Testing the limits of genetic assay for bat species identification. PLOS ONE, vol 14(1): e0224969
journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0224969
Herrera, James P., Neil Duncan, Elizabeth Clare, M. Brock Fenton, and Nancy Simmons
2018 Disassembly of fragmented bat communities in Orange Walk District, Belize." Acta Chiropterologica, vol 20(1): 147-159.
Becker, Daniel J., Matthew M. Chumchal, Alexandra B. Bentz, Steven G. Platt, Gábor Á. Czirják, Thomas R. Rainwater, Sonia Altizer, and Daniel G. Streicker
2017 Predictors and immunological correlates of sublethal mercury exposure in vampire bats. Royal Society Open Science. royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsos.170073
2020 Ecological and evolutionary drivers of haemoplasma infection and bacterial genotype sharing in a Neotropical bat community." Molecular ecology 29(8): 1534-1549. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/mec.15422
Oelbaum, Phillip J., M. Brock Fenton, Nancy B. Simmons, and Hugh G. Broders
2019 Community Structure of a Neotropical bat fauna as revealed by stable isotope analysis: Not all species fit neatly into predicted guilds. BioTropica, vol. 51(5): 719-730. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/btp.12700
Ingala, Melissa R., Daniel J. Becker, Jacob Bak Holm, Karsten Kristiansen, Nancy B. Simmons
2019 Habitat fragmentation is associated with dietary shifts and microbiota variability in common vampire bats. Ecology and Evolution, vol. 9(11): 6508-6523. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ece3.5228
Walker, Faith M., Abby Tobin, Nancy B. Simmons, Colin J. Sobek, Daniel E. Sanchez, Carol L. Chambers, Viacheslav, Y. Fofanov
2019 A fecal sequel: Testing the limits of genetic assay for bat species identification. PLOS ONE, vol 14(1): e0224969
journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0224969
Herrera, James P., Neil Duncan, Elizabeth Clare, M. Brock Fenton, and Nancy Simmons
2018 Disassembly of fragmented bat communities in Orange Walk District, Belize." Acta Chiropterologica, vol 20(1): 147-159.
Becker, Daniel J., Matthew M. Chumchal, Alexandra B. Bentz, Steven G. Platt, Gábor Á. Czirják, Thomas R. Rainwater, Sonia Altizer, and Daniel G. Streicker
2017 Predictors and immunological correlates of sublethal mercury exposure in vampire bats. Royal Society Open Science. royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsos.170073