The Hawaiian Hoary Bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus) is the only extant land mammal native to the Hawaiian archipelago. It is listed as endangered due to apparent population declines, and a lack of knowledge concerning its distribution, abundance, and habitat needs. Agencies and landowners in Hawai‘i seek to assist in the creation of sustainable uses for managed lands while also protecting bat populations and facilitating species recovery. In order to meet these goals and develop appropriate policy for land use practices and bat recovery, detailed information on the bat’s distribution, abundance, population genetics, food habitats, and habitat are being gathered by USGS/PIERC.
Overview:
The Hawaiian Hoary Bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus) is the only extant land mammal native to the Hawaiian archipelago. It is listed as endangered due to apparent population declines, and a lack of knowledge concerning its distribution, abundance, and habitat needs (USFWS 1998). Recent work indicates that the bat may be more widely distributed than previously believed, undergo altitudinal migrations, and uses both native and non-native habitats, and may display seasonal variation in activity and habitat use patterns (Menard 2001). This endangered species is present in many landscaptes that include lands used for silvaculture, agriculture, grazing, and residential areas, and may therefore be affected by land use activities and modifications. Agencies and landowners in Hawai‘i seek to assist in the creation of sustainable uses for managed lands while also protecting bat populations and facilitating species recovery. In order to meet these goals and develop appropriate policy for land use practices and bat recovery, USGS/PIERC gathers detailed information on the bat’s distribution, abundance, population genetics, food habitats, and habitat. Information generated is used in making management decisions by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and by Hawai‘i Department of Lands and Natural Resources.
Highlights and Key Findings:
Distribution and seasonal altitudinal migration in which much of the Hawaiian hoary bat population moves from summer-autumn lowland sites where pregnancy, lactation, and fledging occurs to highland refugia above 5000 feet where over-wintering appears to occur was documented. Seasonal movement patterns are very consistent over multiple years. Radio-tracking data show that individual bats range over large areas and diverse habitat types and are capable of making one-way movements of up to 12 miles per night. Individuals marked and recaptured from 1 to 4 years between radio-tag monitoring habitually use the same foraging and roosting areas over this span of time thus showing strong site fidelity. Acoustic monitoring from 5 years of data collection on the island of Hawai‘i shows consistent patterns of bat occupancy within sites by season and across annual cycles. Acoustic monitoring at several sites on Maui, Kaua‘i, and O‘ahu documented patterns of site use.
Products from this work can be found in the Publications tab.
Below are publications associated with this project.
Acoustic surveys of Hawaiian Hoary Bats in Kahikinui Forest Reserve and Nakula Natural Area Reserve on the Island of Maui
Two tickets to paradise: multiple dispersal events in the founding of hoary bat populations in Hawai'i
Foraging range movements of the endangered Hawaiian hoary bat, Lasiurus cinereus semotus (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae)
Hawaiian hoary bat occupancy at Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park
Modeling the colonization of Hawaii by hoary bats (Lasiurus cinereus)
A five-year study of Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus) occupancy on the island of Hawai`i
Ope`ape`a: Solving the puzzles of Hawaii's only bat
Assessing bat detectability and occupancy with multiple automated echolocation detectors
Below are partners associated with this project.
- Overview
The Hawaiian Hoary Bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus) is the only extant land mammal native to the Hawaiian archipelago. It is listed as endangered due to apparent population declines, and a lack of knowledge concerning its distribution, abundance, and habitat needs. Agencies and landowners in Hawai‘i seek to assist in the creation of sustainable uses for managed lands while also protecting bat populations and facilitating species recovery. In order to meet these goals and develop appropriate policy for land use practices and bat recovery, detailed information on the bat’s distribution, abundance, population genetics, food habitats, and habitat are being gathered by USGS/PIERC.
Overview:
An acoustic monitoring station on the island of Maui, Hawai‘i. Photo: C. Pinzari The Hawaiian Hoary Bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus) is the only extant land mammal native to the Hawaiian archipelago. It is listed as endangered due to apparent population declines, and a lack of knowledge concerning its distribution, abundance, and habitat needs (USFWS 1998). Recent work indicates that the bat may be more widely distributed than previously believed, undergo altitudinal migrations, and uses both native and non-native habitats, and may display seasonal variation in activity and habitat use patterns (Menard 2001). This endangered species is present in many landscaptes that include lands used for silvaculture, agriculture, grazing, and residential areas, and may therefore be affected by land use activities and modifications. Agencies and landowners in Hawai‘i seek to assist in the creation of sustainable uses for managed lands while also protecting bat populations and facilitating species recovery. In order to meet these goals and develop appropriate policy for land use practices and bat recovery, USGS/PIERC gathers detailed information on the bat’s distribution, abundance, population genetics, food habitats, and habitat. Information generated is used in making management decisions by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and by Hawai‘i Department of Lands and Natural Resources.
Highlights and Key Findings:
Distribution and seasonal altitudinal migration in which much of the Hawaiian hoary bat population moves from summer-autumn lowland sites where pregnancy, lactation, and fledging occurs to highland refugia above 5000 feet where over-wintering appears to occur was documented. Seasonal movement patterns are very consistent over multiple years. Radio-tracking data show that individual bats range over large areas and diverse habitat types and are capable of making one-way movements of up to 12 miles per night. Individuals marked and recaptured from 1 to 4 years between radio-tag monitoring habitually use the same foraging and roosting areas over this span of time thus showing strong site fidelity. Acoustic monitoring from 5 years of data collection on the island of Hawai‘i shows consistent patterns of bat occupancy within sites by season and across annual cycles. Acoustic monitoring at several sites on Maui, Kaua‘i, and O‘ahu documented patterns of site use.
Products from this work can be found in the Publications tab.
Research technician Corinna Pinzari inspects a Hawaiian hoary bat. Photo: C. Todd - Publications
Below are publications associated with this project.
Acoustic surveys of Hawaiian Hoary Bats in Kahikinui Forest Reserve and Nakula Natural Area Reserve on the Island of Maui
The Kahikinui Forest Reserve and the adjoining Nakula Natural Area Reserve (KFR-NNAR) was established in 2011 as a conservation area on the leeward slope of Haleakalā Volcano on the island of Maui to protect unique natural features and endangered species including the Hawaiian hoary bat, Lasiurus cinereus semotus. We recorded bat vocalizations from July 2012 to November 2014 using automated echoloAuthorsChristopher M. Todd, Corinna A. Pinzari, Frank BonaccorsoTwo tickets to paradise: multiple dispersal events in the founding of hoary bat populations in Hawai'i
The Hawaiian islands are an extremely isolated oceanic archipelago, and their fauna has long served as models of dispersal in island biogeography. While molecular data have recently been applied to investigate the timing and origin of dispersal events for several animal groups including birds, insects, and snails, these questions have been largely unaddressed in Hawai'i's only native terrestrial mAuthorsAmy L. Russell, Corinna A. Pinzari, Maarten J. Vonhof, Kevin J. Olival, Frank BonaccorsoForaging range movements of the endangered Hawaiian hoary bat, Lasiurus cinereus semotus (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae)
We documented nightly movements of Hawaiian hoary bats (Lasiurus cinereus semotus) on the island of Hawai’i. Based on data from 28 radiotagged individuals mean foraging range (FR) was 230.7±72.3 ha, core-use area (CUA) was 25.5±6.9 ha (or 11.1% of mean FR), and the mean long axis (LAX) across the FR was 3,390.8±754.3 m. There was almost no overlap in CUAs among 4 adult males having overlapping forAuthorsFrank J. Bonaccorso, Christopher M. Todd, Adam C. Miles, P. Marcos GorresenHawaiian hoary bat occupancy at Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park
Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus) vocalizations were recorded using Anabat SD1 and Song Meter SM2Bat ultrasonic recorders at four monitoring stations in Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park on the island of Hawai‘i. We hypothesize that echolocation call events are more numerous during the reproductive season of this bat. Bat detectors recorded from 1700 to 0730 hrs on a total ofAuthorsFrank J. Bonaccorso, Corina Pinzari, Kristina Montoya-AionaModeling the colonization of Hawaii by hoary bats (Lasiurus cinereus)
The Hawaiian archipelago, the most isolated cluster of islands on Earth, has been colonized successfully twice by bats. The putative “lava tube bat” of Hawaii is extinct, whereas the Hawaiian Hoary Bat, Lasiurus cinereus semotus, survives as an endangered species. We conducted a three-stage analysis to identify conditions under which hoary bats originally colonized Hawaii. We used FLIGHT to determAuthorsFrank J. Bonaccorso, Liam P. McGuireA five-year study of Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus) occupancy on the island of Hawai`i
Using acoustic recordings of the vocalizations of the endangered Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus) collected over a five-year period (2007–2011) from 25 survey areas across the island of Hawai`i, we modeled the relationship between habitat attributes and bat occurrence. Our data support the conclusion that hoary bats concentrate in the coastal lowlands of Hawai`i during the breediAuthorsMarcos P. Gorressen, Frank J. Bonaccorso, Corinna A. Pinzari, Christopher M. Todd, Kristina Montoya-Aiona, Kevin W. BrinckOpe`ape`a: Solving the puzzles of Hawaii's only bat
The Hawaiian hoary bat is described as the only land mammal native to Hawaii. In fact, this bat (Lasiurus cinereus semotus) arrived on the islands some 10,000 years ago – in what must qualify as one of the most spectacular immigrations in the history of mammals. The Hawaiian islands, after all, are 2,400 miles (3,860 kilometers) from the nearest landfall on the North American continent, and the diAuthorsFrank J. BonaccorsoAssessing bat detectability and occupancy with multiple automated echolocation detectors
Occupancy analysis and its ability to account for differential detection probabilities is important for studies in which detecting echolocation calls is used as a measure of bat occurrence and activity. We examined the feasibility of remotely acquiring bat encounter histories to estimate detection probability and occupancy. We used echolocation detectors coupled to digital recorders operating at aAuthorsP. M. Gorresen, A.C. Miles, C.M. Todd, F.J. Bonaccorso, T.J. Weller - Partners
Below are partners associated with this project.