Rapid surveys as a key tool for the inventory of the bat fauna of Brazil: New records for the coastal restinga

Abstract

© 2017, Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos. All rights reserved. The restingas present a considerable variation in the floristic structure and composition along their latitudinal and morphoclimatic gradients. This variation may have a direct influence on the set of conditions and resources available for their biological communities, including mammals. The present study is the first to assess the bat fauna of a coastal restinga habitat in northeastern Brazil. The study site was the RPPN Caju in the municipality of Itaporanga D’Ajuda, Sergipe. We collected data on 10 consecutive days in 2014, using mist nets set at ground level, sampling a different point on each day. We captured 191 bats (16 species, 14 genera and 5 families), including the first records of Saccopteryx leptura, Molossops temminckii and Eptesicus brasiliensis for the coastal restinga. The latter two species were recorded for Sergipe for the first time. The recorded species richness is one of the highest yet recorded for Brazilian restinga. We increased the number of records of bat species in the Brazilian restinga from 38 to 41, and the number of species known to occur in Sergipe from 48 to 50. We recommend the “wandering” placement of mist nets as an effective strategy for the rapid assessment of bat communities.