DIVERSITY OF BATS OF SIERRA DE LA MACARENA WITH COMMENTS ON THEIR ECOLOGICAL PATTERNS

Abstract

The Serranía de la Macarena is an outstanding biodiversity hotspot in the western Amazon because it possesses a high diversity due to the influence of several biogeographic regions, a wide elevational range, and high heterogeneity of vegetation. However, knowledge of the bat richness, composition, and structure is precarious and inventories in the area are scarce. We present a list of bat species for La Macarena based on fieldwork campaigns and information from the literature and biological collections. Based on the fieldwork we conducted, we also describe the diversity patterns of bat assemblages from two contrasting vegetation types: Rainforest, and chasmophytic savannas. We registered 73 species from seven families, including nine new records for La Macarena. Forty-eight species were recorded in our sampling sites (35 species in rainforest, and 32 in chasmophytic savannas), while 25 species are reported based on scientific literature and museum specimens. We found ecological differences between the assemblages of both vegetation types related to dominance patterns at the species and ensemble levels. Understory frugivores and nectarivores were the dominant groups in chasmophytic savannas and accounted for 82% of the captures, whereas the canopy frugivores were the most abundant in the rainforest (52%). The differences observed in diversity patterns between both types of assemblages could be associated with highly contrasting vegetation structures and the absence of essential feeding items in chasmophytic savannas. We highlight the need to conduct surveys in new areas to fill the gaps in our knowledge of diversity in this important biodiversity hotspot.