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Barriers and benefits: implications of artificial night-lighting for the distribution of common bats in Britain and Ireland
journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-09, 15:01 authored by Fiona MathewsFiona Mathews, Niamh Roche, Tina Aughney, Nicholas Jones, Julie Day, James Baker, Steve LangtonArtificial lighting is a particular problem for animals active at night. Approximately 69% of mammal species are nocturnal, and one-third of these are bats. Due to their extensive movements—both on a nightly basis to exploit ephemeral food supplies, and during migration between roosts—bats have an unusually high probability of encountering artificial light in the landscape. This paper reviews the impacts of lighting on bats and their prey, exploring the direct and indirect consequences of lighting intensity and spectral composition. In addition, new data from large-scale surveys involving more than 265 000 bat calls at more than 600 locations in two countries are presented, showing that prevalent street-lighting types are not generally linked with increased activity of common and widespread bat species. Such bats, which are important to ecosystem function, are generally considered ‘light-attracted’ and likely to benefit from the insect congregations that form at lights. Leisler's bat (Nyctalus leisleri) may be an exception, being more frequent in lit than dark transects. For common pipistrelle bats (Pipistrellus pipistrellus), lighting is negatively associated with their distribution on a landscape scale, but there may be local increases in habitats with good tree cover. Research is now needed on the impacts of sky glow and glare for bat navigation, and to explore the implications of lighting for habitat matrix permeability.
Funding
Biodiversity Impacts of Street Lighting; Defra
History
Publication status
- Published
File Version
- Published version
Journal
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological SciencesISSN
0962-8436Publisher
The Royal SocietyExternal DOI
Issue
1667Volume
370Page range
20140124 1-13Department affiliated with
- Evolution, Behaviour and Environment Publications
Full text available
- No
Peer reviewed?
- Yes
Legacy Posted Date
2018-09-11First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date
2018-09-11Usage metrics
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