Movement Patterns of Two Bat Species Active During Winter in the Southeastern United States

摘要: During winter in the southeastern United States, cavernicolous bats, many species of which are susceptible to white-nose syndrome, periodically arouse from torpor and occasionally leave hibernacula. We investigated the winter movements and habitat use of two bat species persisting during the white-nose syndrome epizootic: the gray bat Myotis grisescens and the eastern small-footed bat Myotis leibii. We deployed very-high-frequency radio transmitters on individual bats captured outside hibernacula to investigate activity, which may include foraging, during winter. We tracked bats from release at the cave entrance until their transmitter signal was lost or they remained stationary for 15 min or longer. Gray bats (n = 12) had a core range of 1.92 km2 and an overall range of 30.93 km2. Eastern small-footed bats (n = 5) had a core range of 1.98 km2 and an overall range of 20.22 km2. Gray bats used open …