Date of Award
5-31-2023
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Biology, MS
First Advisor
Thomas Risch
Committee Members
Than Boves; Virginie Rolland
Call Number
LD 251 .A566t 2023 G67
Abstract
Populations of several North American bat species have been in decline for several years. Much of this decline is attributed to white-nose syndrome (WNS). To better understand the effects of WNS by increasing our understanding of the bats’ foraging habits, I used bat calls collected by National Park Service personnel on the Buffalo National River, Arkansas, and estimated the bats’ foraging habitat occupancy and relative use. I determined that 1.) a false-positive occupancy model is valid for occupancy estimation when using multiple acoustic bat-id programs; 2.) as of 2016, the progression of WNS had yet to affect bat occupancy on Buffalo National River; and 3.) acoustic detectors may be ideal for some studies, but unsuitable for others. These results should be used to focus foraging habitat management efforts on more occupied/used habitats, thus allowing bats to withstand the potential effects of the later stages of WNS.
Rights Management
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Gore, James W., "Habitat Occupancy and Use for Bat Species of Concern on the Buffalo National River" (2023). Student Theses and Dissertations. 188.
https://arch.astate.edu/all-etd/188
