Evidence of vertical migration in the ipanema bat pygoderma bilabiatum (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae: Stenodermatinae)

Abstract

Migration is defined as a seasonal and cyclic population movement observed in all animal classes and studied mainly in vertebrates. A considerable part of the knowledge on migration comes from birds, for which migration is an important aspect of their biology. In the case of bats, females usually migrate larger distances than males in some species. The present study analyzes the seasonal occurrence of Pygoderma bilabiatum (Wagner, 1843) at different elevations, in order to test for a pattern that evidences migration, using data from the states of Espírito Santo, Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Paraná, Santa Catarina, and Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. A total of 529 specimens of P. bilabiatum were captured. Pygoderma bilabiatum seems to be more frequent at intermediate and high elevations (over 80% of all captures were made above 250 m a.s.l.) and at latitudes above 22°S, where rainfall is high (over 1,500 mm) and temperatures are mild (16-23°C). Sex ratio varied with elevation; it was skewed towards males at lower elevations (N = 9, r2 = 0.60, F = 12.311, p = 0.008, Sex ratio = 0.0004*elevation + 0.976), though females predominated at all altitudinal bands and in all states analyzed. © 2011 Sociedade Brasileira de Zoologia.