batty about bats
Bats, are the second-largest mammalian category globally, with over 1400 recorded species. Distinguished as the only mammals capable of genuine and sustained flight, bats exhibit a worldwide distribution.
Within the West Indies, a total of 56 bat species (including extant, extirpated, and extinct) from seven families have been documented. Notably, 28 of these species are endemic to the region, with the islands of the Antilles (Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, and Jamaica) displaying the highest bat diversity.
Buffy-flower Bat
A well-known characteristic of West Indian bats is their affinity for caves, although certain species may choose alternative roosting sites such as the roofs of buildings. Caves, resulting from the dissolution of limestone by a combination of fresh and saltwater during periods of sea level fluctuation, notably in the Pleistocene Epoch (2.6 million years ago to 11.5 thousand years ago), serve as unique geological features.
Diverse bat species exhibit preferences for specific areas within caves for roosting, with some favouring "hot caves" heated either geothermally, by hot air convection, or generated by the bats themselves.
Temperatures in these caves can range from 28°C to over 40°C and have a humidity of 90-100%. Some researchers have even divided areas within these types of caves into different categories such as Hot Main Chambers and Hot Chamber Foyers. Some bat species are on the opposite side of the spectrum and prefer “cool caves” for which temperatures range from 19°C to 25°C.
Waterhouse Leaf-nosed Bat
The Bahamas’s unique geological history has created a plethora of cave systems of different sizes and complexity. They are home to 10 extant species including one endemic species.
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resources
Rodríguez-Durán, A., 2009. Bat assemblages in the West Indies: the role of caves. Island bats: evolution, ecology and conservation, pp.265-280.
Fleming, T.H., Murray, K.L. and Carstens, B., 2010. Phylogeography and genetic structure of three evolutionary lineages of West Indian phyllostomid bats. Island bats: Evolution, ecology, and conservation, pp.116-150.
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Rodríguez-Durán, A. and Kunz, T.H., 2001. Biogeography of West Indian bats: an ecological perspective. In Biogeography of the West Indies (pp. 355-368). CRC Press.
Morgan, G.S., 2001. Patterns of extinction in West Indian bats. In Biogeography of the west indies (pp. 369-408). CRC press.
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Speer, K.A., Soto-Centeno, J.A., Albury, N.A., Quicksall, Z., Marte, M.G. and Reed, D.L., 2015. Bats of the Bahamas: natural history and conservation. Florida Museum of Natural History Bulletin, 53, pp.45-95.