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Small Mammal Mail - Bi-Annual Newsletter of CCINSA & RISCINSA combined Volume 1, Number 2, Aug-Dec 2009 1 Small Mammal Mail Newsletter celebrating the most useful yet most neglected Mammals for CCINSA & RISCINSA -- Chiroptera, Rodent, Insectivore, & Scandens Conservation and Information Networks of South Asia Volume 1 Number 2 Aug-Dec 2009 Greetings Batters and Ratters ! We have had no complaints as yet about the combination of the two taxa fondly referred as “bats ‘n rats” in our newsletter, or our training workshops which have covered both taxa for a long time. This half of the year, we conducted two seperate training workshops that were very different. The first was in Bhutan, a field techniques training workshop held often in the outdoors, and the second was a taxonomy and ecolation training held in India at the famous MKU Bat Lab as well as an occasional foray out to test the echolator. Another interesting information is that IUCN SSC has requested the Chiroptera Specialist Group to change its name to Bat Specialist Group. We will not change our network name...we will remain CCINSA. Good wishes, Sally Walker, Convenor Contents New Network Members CCINSA / RISCINSA P. 2 BCI has a New Leader, P. 2 Importance of monitoring non-volant small mammals in the Western Ghats, Meena Venkatraman, Pp. 3-7 Opinion, Rajith Dissanayake, P. 8 Bats of Nepal, Hari Adhikari, Pp. 9-16 Conservation status of rodents in Sri Lanka, Mayuri R. Wijesinghe, Pp. 17-18 Notes on Breeding Indian Giant Squirrel (Ratufa indica) at Mysore Zoo, Lakshminarasimha R and Anil Garg, Pp. 19-20 Reporting from Godawari, Sanjan Thapa, Suchieta Shrestha, Sagar Dahal, Arjun Thapa and Rameshwor Kaphle, Pp. 21-23 Lunar Phobia in a Microchiropteran Bat, Hipposideros speoris, S. Suthakar Isaac, Pp. 24-25 The Threat of Climate Change, R.A. Adams, Pp. 26-28 The Training Tale of Hari Adhikari, S. Walker, Pp. 29- 30 Sighting of the Lesser False Vampire Bat Megaderma spasma in Phansad WildlifeSanctuary, Dist. Raigad, Maharashtra, India. Nikhil Bhopale1 and Kavita Malya, Pp. 31 Netting technique, capture and handling of Pteropus giganteus, Sudhakaran M.R. and Swamidoss, D.P., Pp. 31- 32 Obituary - Prof. Dr. A. Gopalakrishna, P. 33 Training in Field techniques for Small mammals, Bhutan, Sonam Choden and R. Marimuthu, Pp. 34-38 Bat Taxonomy and Echolocation Workshop for Researchers at M.K.U., B.A. Daniel, Pp. 39-44 Public Education on Bats throughout India using materials funded by BCI, Pp. 45-46 Announcement: Bat Biology and Conservation Workshop. P 47 On 11 July, 2009 Small Mammals Conservation and Research Foundation, SMCRF displayed a 4x3 square feet flex board at the Nagarjuna Peace Cave, Kathmandu. The board includes the information and importance of bats and it’s conservation aspect. The objective of the program is to create an awareness on conservation of bats to locals and tourists visiting the caves. Sanjan Thapa Flex Board at Nagarjuna

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Page 1: Newsletter celebrating the most useful yet most …...Malik, Aitzaz Ahsan, Student, Sabri Manzil, Jhelum, Pakistan. aitzaz103@hotmail.com, aitzaz103@yahoo.com New Network Members On

Small Mammal Mail - Bi-Annual Newsletter of CCINSA & RISCINSA combinedVolume 1, Number 2, Aug-Dec 2009

1

Small Mammal MailNewsletter celebrating the most useful yet most neglected Mammals

for CCINSA & RISCINSA -- Chiroptera, Rodent, Insectivore, & ScandensConservation and Information Networks of South Asia

Volume 1 Number 2 Aug-Dec 2009

Greetings Batters and Ratters !We have had no complaints as yet about the combination ofthe two taxa fondly referred as “bats ‘n rats” in ournewsletter, or our training workshops which have coveredboth taxa for a long time.

This half of the year, we conducted two seperate trainingworkshops that were very different. The first was inBhutan, a field techniques training workshop held often inthe outdoors, and the second was a taxonomy and ecolationtraining held in India at the famous MKU Bat Lab as well asan occasional foray out to test the echolator.

Another interesting information is that IUCN SSC hasrequested the Chiroptera Specialist Group to change itsname to Bat Specialist Group. We will not change ournetwork name...we will remain CCINSA.Good wishes, Sally Walker, Convenor

Contents

New Network Members CCINSA / RISCINSAP. 2

BCI has a New Leader, P. 2

Importance of monitoring non-volant small mammals inthe Western Ghats, Meena Venkatraman, Pp. 3-7

Opinion, Rajith Dissanayake, P. 8

Bats of Nepal, Hari Adhikari, Pp. 9-16

Conservation status of rodents in Sri Lanka, MayuriR. Wijesinghe, Pp. 17-18

Notes on Breeding Indian Giant Squirrel (Ratufaindica) at Mysore Zoo, Lakshminarasimha R and AnilGarg, Pp. 19-20

Reporting from Godawari, Sanjan Thapa, SuchietaShrestha, Sagar Dahal, Arjun Thapa and RameshworKaphle, Pp. 21-23

Lunar Phobia in a Microchiropteran Bat, Hipposiderosspeoris, S. Suthakar Isaac, Pp. 24-25

The Threat of Climate Change, R.A. Adams, Pp. 26-28

The Training Tale of Hari Adhikari, S. Walker, Pp. 29-30

Sighting of the Lesser False Vampire BatMegaderma spasma in Phansad WildlifeSanctuary,Dist. Raigad, Maharashtra, India. Nikhil Bhopale1and Kavita Malya, Pp. 31

Netting technique, capture and handling of Pteropusgiganteus, Sudhakaran M.R. and Swamidoss, D.P., Pp. 31-32

Obituary - Prof. Dr. A. Gopalakrishna, P. 33

Training in Field techniques for Small mammals,Bhutan, Sonam Choden and R. Marimuthu, Pp. 34-38

Bat Taxonomy and Echolocation Workshop forResearchers at M.K.U., B.A. Daniel, Pp. 39-44

Public Education on Bats throughout India usingmaterials funded by BCI, Pp. 45-46

Announcement: Bat Biology and ConservationWorkshop. P 47

On 11 July, 2009 Small Mammals Conservation andResearch Foundation, SMCRF displayed a 4x3 square feetflex board at the Nagarjuna Peace Cave, Kathmandu. Theboard includes the information and importance of bats andit’s conservation aspect. The objective of the program isto create an awareness on conservation of bats to localsand tourists visiting the caves. Sanjan Thapa

Flex Board at Nagarjuna

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CCINSA

Adhikari, Niranjan,Coordinator for Publication & Communication,NaReCon, Rupandehi Dist., Nepal. [email protected],

Sudhakaran, M.R., Lecturer, Dept. of Advance Zoology &Biotechnology, Sri Paramakalyani College, Alwarkurichi 627 412Tamil Nadu. [email protected]

Ariyarathna, Sameera Chaturanga, Supun, Koswathumanana,Karandeniya, Sri Lanka. [email protected]

Mallik, Ashok Kumar, Res Scholar, Center for Ecol Science,IIS, Bangalore 560 012, Karnataka. [email protected]

Mohan, K.C., Secretary, NaReCon, Pokhara, [email protected], [email protected]

Madala, Malik Fasil, Research Scholar, Dept. of WildlifeScience, College of Forestry, Kerala Agricultural University,Thrissur 680 656, Kerala. [email protected]

Shrotriya, Shivam, C/o Mr. Milap Singh Mehta, Pithoragarh 262501 Uttarakhand. [email protected] w

Biswas, Jayant, Researcher, National Cave Research andProtection Organisation, Central Zone, Raipur 492 001Chhattisgarh. [email protected], [email protected]

Wangyal, Jigme Tshelthrim, Forest Officer / Researcher,Bumdeling Wildlife Sanctuary, Trashiyanstse, [email protected], [email protected]

Dendup, Tashi, Senior Forest Ranger, Wangdue Forest Division,Lobesa, Bhutan. [email protected],[email protected]

Wangdi, Sonam, Forestry Officer, Nature ConservationDivision, Thimphu, Bhutan. [email protected],[email protected]

Picot Manuel, Monica, Student, Jnana Prabodhini SamshodhanSanstha (JPSS), Pune 411 030, [email protected]

Singh, Astha, Research Scholar, Ranchi University, Ranchi,Jharkhand. [email protected], [email protected]

RISCINSA

Rengarajan, Lakshminarayanan Rengasamy, Research Scholar,Dept. of Animal Science, Bharathidasan University,Tiruchirappalli 620 024 Tamil Nadu. [email protected]

Wangyal, Jigme Tshelthrim, Forest Officer / Researcher,Bumdeling Wildlife Sanctuary, Trashiyanstse, [email protected], [email protected]

Dorji, Kuenzang, Senior Instructor, Ugyen Wangchuck Institutefor Conservation and Envirornment, Bumthang, [email protected], [email protected]

Dendup, Tashi, Senior Forest Ranger, Wangdue Forest Division,Lobesa, [email protected],[email protected]

Malik, Aitzaz Ahsan, Student, Sabri Manzil, Jhelum, [email protected], [email protected]

New Network Members

On March 1st, Bat ConservationInternational will welcome its newExecutive Director, Nina Fascione.She succeeds Merlin Tuttle, whofounded BCI in 1982 and built it intothe world’s foremost organizationfor bat conservation.

“I have known and admired Merlinfor many years, and I am thrilledat this opportunity to help protect hislegacy and build on it as BatConservation International expands into the future,” Fascione said.

She currently is Vice President for Field Conservation Programsat Defenders of Wildlife in Washington, D.C. She joined theorganization as a program associate in 1995 and rose quickly toleadership positions. A conservation professional for 24 years,Fascione brings a rich range of experience with wildlife,including bats, to her new role of leading BCI.

Fascione has worked in various aspects of bat-conservationeducation and outreach, and currently leads Defenders ofWildlife’s work on White-nose Syndrome—a devastating epidemicthat has killed an estimated million or more hibernating bats of sixspecies in nine states. She was co-chair of the American Zoo andAquarium’s Bat Taxon Advisory Group in 1991-97, coordinatingstrategic planning and implementation of conservation andbreeding programs for threatened bats.

Internationally, she was an advisor to such initiatives as a lionproject in northern Kenya, a koala-conservation summit inAustralia and zoo-research training in Taiwan. She co-foundedthe Emerging Wildlife Conservation Leaders program. She alsoworked with a coalition of groups to draft and seek congressionalsupport for the Great Cats and Rare Canids Act to fund theconservation of 15 imperiled species.

“We are very excited about Nina’s enthusiasm and her vastexperience in the conservation of mammals and especially herinterest in bats during her many years of service with Defendersof Wildlife,” said John Mitchell, Chair of BCI’s Board ofTrustees.

When Merlin Tuttle founded BCI, many American bat specieswere endangered or declining in numbers severe enough towarrant concern. Today, bats are facing their greatest threatsever—White-nose Syndrome and wind turbines.“Stepping back from BCI after all these years has been difficult,but Nina Fascione is an excellent choice to lead the organizationinto the future and I look forward to working with her,” saidMerlin. “I wish only the best for Nina and BCI in the years tocome.”

About BCIBat Conservation International’s (BCI) mission is to protect batsand their habitats for a healthy planet. The non-profit organiza-tion, based in Austin, Texas, and its 10,000 members are devotedto conservation, education, and research initiatives involving batsand the ecosystems they serve. Founded in 1982 by Dr. MerlinTuttle, the organization has achieved unprecedented progress,emphasizing sustainable uses of natural resources to benefit bothbats and people. For more information, visit www.batcon.org.

BCI has a New Leader

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASESusan [email protected]

Nina Fascione

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The Western Ghats are included among the globalhotspots. Proportion of endemics among birds andmammals are lesser than those of other vertebrate taxaoccurring in the Western Ghats. 22% of murids and 27%of ground shrews occurring in India are found here. Ofthese, 16 non-volant small mammals are endemic. Severalstudies conducted in this region have shown rodentcommunities to be distinctive with respect to habitatsand also sensitive to habitat degradation. It is proposedthat rodent communities can be used as the basis ofmonitoring changes in the habitat. It has also beensuggested that the recent sub-clusters nomination ofnatural heritage sites extending the length of WesternGhats from Agasthyamalai to Sahyadri be used asmonitoring units across the landscape.

Western Ghats: Natural HeritageRegions that have lost at least 70% of their originalhabitat and yet support more than 60% of the world'sbiodiversity are recognized as biodiversity hotspots(Myers 1988). Globally, 34 biodiversity hotspots arerecognized (Mittermeier 2004). The Western Ghats-SriLanka region is one of the richest and most fascinatingamong them. The Western Ghats are spectacular moun-tain ranges that extend for 1600 km covering 1,40,000km² area along the west coast of peninsular India. Theforests of the Western Ghats can be considered as thebest representatives of non-equatorial tropical ever-green forest that include a mosaic of landscapes,varying from thorn scrub to dense evergreen forests.The Western Ghats form a distinctive biogeographiczone (5B) with small proportions of Western Ghats-Malabar plains zone (5A) and Deccan Peninsula-DeccanSouth zone (6E) included with it (Rodgers et al. 2002).Three distinct forest types, namely, MontaneRainforest, Moist Deciduous and Dry Deciduous forests,are further categorized into six ecological zones.

A variety of geomorphic formations of the WesternGhats are proof of geological processes that occurredand indicate the biogeographic history of the countrywith representatives of Eastern Himalayan, Indo-Malayan and Ethiopian affinities. In addition, thepronounced variation in altitude (up to 2865 m), latitude(8° to 21° N) and marked rainfall gradient combine toproduce an intriguing pattern of biodiversity making upa fascinating assemblage of flora and fauna, many ofwhich are endemic and endangered. Among the verte-brates, amphibians (78%) and reptiles (62%) have thehighest number of endemic species while birds (4%) andmammals (12%) record a much lower proportion ofendemics (Daniels 2003). 586 species of birds and 137mammal species with a distinct distribution acrosshabitats have been reported for the Western Ghats

(Daniels 2003). Seventeen out of 76 known species ofmurid rodents and seven out of 26 species of groundshrews occurring in India have been recorded in theWestern Ghats (Kumar et al. 2001).

The community ecology of birds and mammals are ofimmense importance and fascination to managers,naturalists and scientists alike. To a naturalist, eachhabitat represents a unique visual treat with its distinctcomplex of calls and sounds. To a scientist the varia-tions in the bird and mammal assemblages represent theinfluence of habitat and thereby ecosystem functioning.To the manager, these assemblages and their survivalrepresent the health of the ecosystem. Mammals such asthe Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus), Tiger (Pantheratigris) Nilgiri Langur (Trachypithecus johnii), Lion-tailedMacaque (Macaca silenus) are some of the charismaticflagships that form the focus of conservationprogrammes for the Western Ghats. In all, there are 20national parks and 68 sanctuaries across the WesternGhats located in the states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu,Karnataka, Maharashtra, Goa and Gujarat. Followingidentification of areas of high conservation value (Daset al. 2006), 39 sites in 7 sub-clusters in the States ofKerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Maharashtra havebeen nominated for inscription on the World NaturalHeritage list (Figure 1). In this context, it is relevant toreview the importance and available information on smallmammals.

Non-Volant small mammals1.Status SurveysNon-volant small mammals (NVSM) include insectivores(hedgehogs and shrews), scandents (tree shrews) androdents. Among order rodentia the prominent familiesinclude Sciuridae (squirrels) and Muridae (rats andmice). NVSM play an important role as seed predatorsand dispersal agents in tropical forests, in addition tocontributing to energy flow and nutrient cycling(Fleming 1975). They form an important prey base formedium-size carnivores and raptors (Hayward andPhillipson 1979). Yet, population decline, loss ofendemics and changes in species richness and abun-dance as a result of anthropogenic activities remainsparsely documented. A total of 16 NVSM endemicsoccur in the Western Ghats and Western Ghats-SriLanka complex (table 1). In the past two decades onlythree long-term studies on small mammals (Molur 2009,Chandrashekar-Rao 1995, Shanker 1998) and few short-term studies and surveys have been conducted (Meena1997, Kumara and Singh 2006, Kumar et al. 2005).

Importance of monitoring non-volant small mammals in the Western GhatsMeena Venkatraman

701, Vesta-b, Thane 400 601, [email protected],[email protected]

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Figure 1: Serial nomination of Natural Heritage sites in the Western Ghats

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Ecological studies and surveys of Indian Giant Squirrel(Ramakrishnan 1991, Borges et al. 1992, Dutta and Goyal1996, Ramachandran 1998, Kumara and Singh 2006,Srinivas et al. 2008), Grizzled Giant Squirrel (Joshuaand Johnsingh 1992, Sharma 1992, Ramachandran 1993,Paulraj and Kasinathan 1993, Venkataraman 1996,Kumar et al. 2007), and flying squirrels (Rajamani 2000,2001, 2008; Kumara and Singh 2006) have also beensporadic.

2. Species compositionHow important is the knowledge of species compositionand community ecology for conservation? TheMudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary was a wonderful choicefor a study that I undertook on small mammals in 1997.In three months of data collection, I had six species ofrodents and one insectivore that were represented by396 captures of 195 individuals out of a total of 7,425trap nights with a reasonably high overall capture rateof 5.3% (Venkataraman 1997, Venkataraman et al.2005). What was more remarkable about the study sitewas the gradient of habitats that changed from scrub inthe east, giving way to dry deciduous and then to moistdeciduous habitat (Figure 2). This gave a very distinct

pattern of small mammal distribution and indicated thediverse pattern of small mammal communities withrespect to habitat. Indeed these patterns of smallmammal community and habitat have been the centraltheme of research for a large body of literature on thetopic. The implications of habitat disturbance, degrada-tion and loss on small mammal community structure arealso of great interest. These studies show that contraryto popular opinion small mammals particularly, murids arenot all adaptable or invasive. Habitat degradation leadsto local extinction of sensitive species, invasion ofdominants and alteration in species composition (Molurand Singh 2009). In the absence of continued researchand documentation of status and distribution, the loss ofdiversity or the magnitude of change on NVSM remainsunknown.

Monitoring ProtocolsFocal species

The Grizzled Giant Squirrel (Ratufa macroura)The Grizzled Giant Squirrel is endemic to India and SriLanka. It is protected as Schedule I of the IndianWildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 and has been assignedVulnerable status (IUCN Ver 3.1). Historically, its range

Figure 2: Location of study plots with respect to habitats (Scrub: plots 1-3; dry deciduous 4- 9, moistdeciduous 10-12) across the Mudumalai WLS during small mammal survey (Venkataraman et.al. 2005)

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Table 1: Endemic Insectivores, Scandent and Rodents of Western Ghats

and Western Ghats-Sri Lanka

Scientific Name Common Name India* W. Ghats

W. Ghats- Sri Lanka

Order: Insectivora

Hemiechinus nudiventris Madras Hedgehog +

Suncus dayii Day’s Shrew +

Suncus montanus South Asian Highland Shrew +

Suncus niger Nilgiri Highland Shrew +

Feroculus feroculus Kelaart’s Long-clawed Shrew +

Order: Rodentia

Family: Sciuridae

Petinomys fuscocapillus Travancore Flying Squirrel +

Funambulus tristriatus Western Ghats Squirrel +

Funambulus sublineatus Dusky-striped Squirrel +

Ratufa indica Indian Giant Squirrel +

Ratufa macroura Grizzled Giant Squirrel +

Family: Muridae

Rattus ranjinae + **

Rattus satarae Western Ghats Forest

Canopy Rat

+

Millardia kondana Kondana Rat +

Mus famulus Bonhote’s Mouse +

Platacanthomys lasiurus Spiny Tree Mouse +

Vandeleuria nilagirica Nilgiri Vandeleuria +

* Endemic; reported from other parts of India and also located in Western Ghats

** (Malabar coast)

included Eastern Ghats (Dharmapuri, Salem and Attur)and the rainshadow or eastern slopes of the WesternGhats (Joshua and Johnsingh 1992). The species faceshabitat fragmentation due to habitat loss particularlyowing to spread of plantations. Presently, substantialpopulation occurs in Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary,Srivilliputtur Grizzled Giant squirrel sanctuary andSiruvattu-kombai in the Palni Hills.

Indian Giant Squirrel (Ratufa indica):Endemic to India, widely distributed in peninsularIndia, the Indian Giant Squirrel population has declinedby more than 20% due to habitat loss (Molur et al.2005). It preferentially uses large trees and requirescanopy continuity (Borges et al. 1992). Other thanhabitat loss, poaching has been identified as a majorthreat to the species.

Malabar Spiny Tree Mouse (Platacanthomys lasiurus)Malabar Spiny Tree Mouse is endemic to the evergreenforests of the Western Ghats. It has been mostlyassociated with undisturbed forest patches (Jayson2006, Molur and Singh 2009, Mudappa et al. 2001) andcan considered a good indicator of habitat quality.

Focal habitatsThe nominated seven sub-clusters starting fromAgasthyamalai and ending in the Sahyadri sub-clusterinclude a range of habitats with unique assemblage offlora and fauna (Figure 1). These sub-clusters can beused to record the gradient change in rodent communi-ties from southern to the northern limits of the WesternGhats. NVSM composition for southern Western Ghatshas been recorded by Kumar et al. (2001), Jayson(2006). For the Anamalais Chandrasekhar-Rao recordedfive species (Rattus rattus, Mus platythrix, Golundaellioti, Madromys blanfordi, Funambulus tristriatus); sixspecies for Mudumalai WLS (Madromys blanfordi,Rattus rattus, Mus platythrix, Mus musculus, Suncusmontanus, Tatera indica, Platacanthomys lasiurus) byVenkataraman et al. (2005); and six species (Rattusrattus, Mus famulus, Mus platythrix, Platacanthomyslasiurus, Suncus murinus and Suncus dayi) for theUpper Nilgirs have been recorded (Shanker 2000). ForCoorg regions adjoining Brahmagiri, Pushpagiri andTalacauvery forests falling under Talacauverysubcluster 14 species (Bandicota bengalensis, Golundaellioti, Millardia meltada, Mus booduga, Mus musculus,

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Rattus rufescens, Rattus satarae, Rattus wroughtoni,Vandeleuria nilagirica, Funambulus tristriatus,Platacanthomys lasiurus, Suncus etruscus, Suncusmurinus and Suncus niger) have been reported by Molurand Singh (2009). The Sahydri sub-cluster has uniquegeology, rocky lateritic plateaus with distinctive floraand fauna. NVSM surveys would be very informative.

Each sub-cluster includes a complex of habitats. Uniquehabitats of the Western Ghats have to be conserved andthe changes occurring need to be monitored. Rodentcommunity composition can be used to understand thechanges caused due to habitat degradation. For in-stance, for the upper Nilgiris, the communities for sholaand grasslands were found to be distinctive (Shanker1998). Other habitats such as Myristica swamps, thebamboo and reed brakes exclusive to the Western Ghatsneed to be surveyed and monitored.

ReferenceBorges, R.M., S. Mali and S. Ranganathan 1992. The status,ecology and conservation of the Indian giant squirrel (Ratufaindica), Tech Report No. 1, Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun.Chandrasekar-Rao, A. and M.E. Sunquist 1996. Ecology of smallmammals in tropical forest habitats of southern India. Journal ofTropical Ecology 12: 561- 571.Das, A., J. Krishnaswamy, K.S. Bawa, M.C. Kiran, V. Srinivas, N.S.Kumar and K.U. Karanth 2006. Prioritisation of conservationareas in the Western Ghats, India. Biol Conservation 133: 16-31Dutta, A. and S.P. Goyal 1996. Comparison of forest structure anduse by the Indian giant squirrel (Ratufa indica) in two riverineforests of India. Biotropica 28: 394-399.Fleming, T.H., 1975. The role of small mammals in tropicalecosystems. Pp. 269-298 in Small mammals: Their productivity andpopulation dynamics. Eds. F. Golley, K. Petrusewics, and L.Ryszkowski. Cambridge University Press, New York.Hayward, G.F. and J. Phillipson 1979. Community structure andfunctional role of small mammals in ecosystems pp. 135-212 inEcology of small mammals. Ed. D.M. Stoddart. Chapman and Hall,London.Jayson, E.A. 2006. Status, distribution, food and feeding ofMalabar Spiny Dormouse (Platacanthomys lasiurus Blyth) in theWestern Ghats of Kerala. Final Report of the Research ProjectKFRI Research Report No. 293. KFRI, Peechi.Joshua, J. and A.J.T. Johnsingh 1992. Status of endangeredGrizzled Giant Squirrel and its habitat. Pages 151-159 in TropicalEcosystems: ecology and management. Eds. K. P. Singh and J. S.Singh. Wiley Eastern, New Delhi.Kumar, A., R. Chellam, B.C. Choudhury, D. Mudappa, K. Vasudevan,N.M. Ishwar and B. Noon. (2001). Impact of rainforest fragmen-tation on small mammals and herpetofauna in the Western Ghats,south India: A summary of research findings. Wildlife Instituteof India, Dehradun, India.Kumara, H.N. and M. Singh 2006. Distribution and relativeabundance of giant squirrel and flying squirrel in Karnataka,India. Mammalia, 70, 40-47.Kumar, S., G. Agoramoorthy, M.J. Hsu 2007. Population size,density and conservation status of the grizzled giant squirrel inChinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, India Mammalia 71 (1): 89-94Mittermeier,R.A., Gil,P.R., Hoffmann,M., Pilgrim, J., Brooks, T.,Mittermeier, C.G., Lamoreux,J. and da Fonseca, G.A.B. (eds.)2004. Hotspots revisited. Cemex, MexicoMolur, S., C. Srinivasulu, B. Srinivasulu, S. Walker, P.O. Nameerand L. Ravikumar 2005. Status of South Asian Non-volant SmallMammals: (C.A.M.P.) Workshop Report. Zoo Outreach Organiza-tion/CBSG-South Asia, Coimbatore, India, 618 pp.

Molur, S. 2009. Habitat and status assessment of mammals withspecial reference to rodents and bats in southern Karnataka. PhDthesis submitted to Mysore University, Mysuru. 230 pp.Molur, S. and M. Singh 2009. Non-volant small mammals of theWestern Ghats of Coorg district, southern India. Journal ofThreatened Taxa 1(12): 589-608.Mudappa, D., A. Kumar and R. Chellam, 2001.- Abundance andhabitat selection of the Malabar spiny dormouse in the rainforestsof the southern Western Ghats, India. Current Sci 80: 424-427.Myers, N., Mittermeier, R. A., Mittermeier, C. G., da Fonseca, G. A.B., and Kent, J. 2000. Biodiversity hotspots for conservationpriorities. Nature 403: 853-858.Paulraj, S. and N. Kasinathan 1993. Scantly known grizzled giantsquirrel (Ratufa macroura) of India: status and conservation.Indian Forester 119:828-833.Rajamani, N. 2000. Ecology and behaviour of the large brownflying squirrel (Petaurista philippensis) in a rainforest fragment,southern Western Ghats. M.S. Thesis. Pondicherry University,Pondicherry, IndiaRajamani, N. 2001. The status and distribution of the smallTravancore flying squirrel (Petinomys fuscocapillus) and the largebrown flying squirrel (Petaurista philippensis). Final technicalreport, SACON, Coimbatore.Rajamani, N. and N. Parthasarathy 2008. Food habits of theIndian giant flying squirrel (Petaurista philippensis) in a rainforest fragment, Western Ghats. Journal of Mammalogy 89 (6):1550-1556Ramachandran, K.K. 1993. Status survey and distribution ofendangered grizzled giant squirrel in Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary,Kerala, India. Indian Journal of Forestry 16: 226-231Ramachandran, K.K., Ecology and behaviour of Malabar giantsquirrel (Ratufa indica maxima) Schreber. KFRI Report 55(Summary), Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi, 1988.Ramakrishnan, U. 1991. Behavioural studies of the Malabar GiantSquirrel and its habitat. M.S. Thesis. Pondicherry University,Pondicherry, IndiaRodgers, W.A., H.S. Panwar and V.B. Mathur 2002. Wildlifeprotected area network in India: A review. Wildlife Institute ofIndia, Dehradun.Shanker, K. 1998. Community Ecology of small mammals inmontane ecosystems of the Upper Nilgiris, southern India. Ph.D.thesis Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. 195 ppShanker, K. 2000. Small mammal trapping in tropical montaneforests of the Upper Nilgiris, southern India: an evaluation ofCapture-Recapture models in estimating population size. Journalof Biosciences 25: 99-111Sharma, N. 1992. Status of endangered Grizzled giant squirreland its habitat. M.S. Thesis. Pondicherry University, Pondicherry,IndiaSrinivas,V., P.D. Venugopal and S. Ram 2008. Site occupancy ofthe Indian giant squirrel Ratufa indica in Kalakad-MundanthuraiTiger Reserve, Tamil Nadu, India. Current Science 95(7): 889-894.Venkataraman, M. 1997. Small mammal communities of MudumalaiWildlife Sanctuary, southern India. M.S. Thesis. PondicherryUniversity, Pondicherry, IndiaVenkataraman, M. 2001. The Malabar Spiny DormousePlatacanthomys lasiurus In Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary,Tamilnadu. Journal of Bombay Natural History Society 94(3):561.Venkataraman, M. 1996. A study of the Grizzled giant squirrel inSiruvattukadu-kombai. Report submitted to Palni Hills Conserva-tion Council (PHCC), Kodaikanal.Venkataraman, M., K. Shanker and R. Sukumar 2005. Smallmammal communities of tropical forest habitats in MudumalaiWildlife Sanctuary, southern India. Mammalia 69 (3-4): 349-358

AcknowledgementI would like to thank GIS cell Wildlife Insitute of Indiafor the natural heritage site map.

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(combined) BAT NET - CCINSA Newsletter and Rat-A-Tattle - RISCINSA NewsletterConservation and Information Network of South Asia, Volume 1, Number 2, Aug-Dec 2009

8

Opinion

In March 2008 I was awarded a PhD for my revision of Funambulus palm squirrels. The centre oftheir diversity is in southern India and there seem to be far more species than assumed in the pastwith new endemics for India and Sri Lanka. My first paper on the subject has been severely delayedwhile I sit on a body of exciting research and data.

Tragically for Indian mammal research, absolutely no physical smaterial is allowed to be taken outfrom India for molecular work. Most of my work on a molecular basis was conducted on dry museummaterial held at London’s Natural History Museum, and DNA data from these is compromised. Longsequences of DNA are broken down and need to be sequenced in sections before being marriedtogether to restore them to a palpable original condition. Molecular work on this basis is slow andpainstaking and worse, very expensive, but is all that is possible for decent taxonomic work on Indianwildlife outside India. By contrast, I did collect drops of blood from several specimens of squirrel inSri Lanka, releasing them unharmed back to the wild and these drops of blood on Whatman filterpaper (Whatman classic card) provided excellent sequences and voucher material.

Since the 1960s, detailed taxonomic work on Indian wildlife, mammals in particular has slowed downconsiderably. Despite a resurgence in mammal research progress seems very slow. I am reliablyinformed by Dr. Duckworth who discovered as new species of bulbul in SE Asia (along with a fewothers) last year, that SE Asian wildlife research lags about 20 years behind that of India. On theother hand there is no problem in moving out specimens from Laos PDR, and type specimens have beenshared with the UK and Australia. Such enlightened sharing of material with “foreign” museums doesnot occur when it comes to India and Sri Lanka except when it comes to drops of blood. On the basisof my work in the Colombo Museum Sri Lanka, many specimens have been badly curated, damaged orlost and at least related historic collections survived in the London collection which retains thecharacter of the entire collection as it was available originally. We can only hope that Indian museumcollections have fared better and also remain accessible to researchers, though reports indicateevidence to the contrary with regards to collections originally housed in Calcutta.

Things move on, even though we live in times where taxonomy is regarded as largely completed withregards to birds and mammals (nothing could be farther from the truth). Taxonomists, like theircharges are a vanishing species with little available funding. We are moving back to the time of theVictorian gentleman and the amateur, when individuals with enough personal resources carried outwork themselves or were sponsored by interested philanthropists and millionaires, rather than stategovernments or more official funding bodies (that are often struggling for resources now or facingcutbacks).

At least there is more technology available for filming live animals like never before and suchdigitized information cannot be restricted as “sovereign property that may not be exported at anycost”. Of course Indian mangos, chillis and dried fish reach us in abundant quantities even if not evenpurified DNA from research subjects can be taken out of India, let alone drops of blood. We live inhope.

Rajith Dissanayake, BSc MSc PhD FLS FZS

[email protected]

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The rodents as a group are of significant interest to SriLanka as they form a conspicuous part of the country'smammalian fauna. Twenty-two species of indigenousrodents occur on the island, which include 13 rats andmice, two bandicoots, four squirrels, two glidingsquirrels and one porcupine. Six species Srilankmysohiensis (Bi-colored Rat), Rattus montanus (HighlandRat), Mus mayori (Spiny Rat), Mus fernandoni (SpinyMouse), Vandeleuria nolthenii (Long-tailed Tree Mouse)and Funambulus layardi (Flame-striped Jungle squirrel)are endemic to the island. Srilankamys is also a mono-typic relict genus whose nearest ancestors are found inthe distant Himalaya. One rodent, Rattus norvegicus, isan introduced species with well established feralpopulations (Weerakoon & Goonatilake 2006). At leasttwo species will be added as a result of recent taxo-nomic revisions. The majority of the native rodents(90%) are inhabitants of the lowland and montanerainforests. About 25% of the rodents are in factconfined to this region. It is also significant that fiveof the six endemics are restricted to or preferentiallyutilize rainforest habitats. Only two species, Madromysblanfordi and Mus fernandoni, are confined to the drierareas of the country.

Studies on conservation biology of rodents have un-veiled the spectrum of ecological services provided bythis important group of mammals. By virtue of theirabundance the rodents contribute significantly to thesustenance of natural ecosystems. They function asseed predators and dispersers and as prey for preda-tory birds, reptiles and large mammals. Many alsopredate upon insects. Furthermore, rodents enhancerainforest health through their relationships withmycorrhizal fungi and by enhancing soil aeration. Thedisappearance of rodents would thus have seriousimplications on faunal assemblages in many naturalecosystems of which they are a part. On the negativeside, certain species of rodents transmit dreaded humandiseases, invade homes and destroy stored products andcrops and have therefore been regarded as a scourgefor thousands of years. Hence, there is an urgency tocontrol rodent pests whilst at the same time conservingthe valuable species.

In balancing pest management and biodiversity conser-vation, Sri Lanka as a country faces many challenges.From among the biodiversity hotspots, the southwesternrainforests of the island together with those of theWestern Ghats of India harbours the highest humanpopulation density making it one of the most vulnerableregions in the world (Cincotta et al. 2000). The rapidrate of destruction and degradation of theserainforests is no doubt the leading cause for the range

reductions and population declines of most faunalspecies. Seven rodent species have been recognized asnationally threatened while five are threatened at theglobal level (IUCN 1999 & 2002). Forest fragmentationis particularly threatening to small mammals due to theirlow mobility. Individual species may, however, exhibitdifferential tolerance to human perturbations. Specieswith small distributional ranges such as Rattus montanus,Srlankamys ohiensis and Mus mayori, may face greaterthreats of extinction than the more widespread specieslike Rattus rattus (Wijesinghe & Brooke 2004). Simi-larly, ecological traits of endemics may render themmore susceptible to habitat modification than the non-endemics. For instance, it was found that endemics arehabitat specialists that occupy larger home ranges thanthe non-endemic species (Wijesinghe & Brooke 2004).Consequently many of them are incapable of utilizingman-modified habitats (Wijesinghe 2005; Wijesinghe &Brooke 2005). Only strict protection of core areas andthe establishment of habitat linkages between isolatedforest fragments would enhance the survival of theserainforest rodents. Long-term survival of certain rareand range-restricted species such as the S. ohiensis andR. montanus may also depend on species-specific conser-vation strategies. In contrast to such species, theexpansion of human settlements also facilitates theinflux of highly adaptable pest species such as thehouse rodents (R. r. kandianus and Mus musculus) thathave a detrimental effect on the other forest-dwellingsmall mammals (Wijesinghe & Brooke 2004). The spreadof such species in forest habitats should be monitoredif control measures are to be adopted.

Sadly, rodents are often also neglected by conserva-tionists. Their small size, nocturnal behaviour andsecretive habitats render them a particularly difficultgroup of animals to study. Research on rainforestrodents involves tedious live trapping regimes in diffi-cult terrain and under harsh conditions. The lack ofadequate knowledge on taxonomy, distribution andabundance of many forest-dwelling rodents has hin-dered their conservation and management efforts(Weerakoon & Goonatileke 2006). No data are yetavailable on population trends of most species. Further-more, many areas of Sri Lanka, such as the north andnorthwest, isolated hillocks of the dry zone and themontane region are still inadequately surveyed(Weerakoon & Goonatileke 2006). Ecological studiesthat are crucial to evaluate the pest, non-pest or threat-ened status of different rodent species should beundertaken in order to implement control or conserva-tion strategies. Other topics of research that have been

Conservation status of rodents in Sri LankaMayuri R.Wijesinghe

Senior Lecturer, Department of Zoology, University ofColombo, Colombo 3, Sri Lanka. [email protected]

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largely ignored by ecologists are parasites and diseases.There has been little effort to assess the role ofdiseases in limiting or regulating rodent populations.

It is also unfortunate that rodents have always beenconsidered as troublesome animals by the generalpublic. Despite their notorious identity, only fourspecies of rodents in Sri Lanka (Rattus rattus, Musbooduga, Bandicota indica and B. bengalensis) areknown to cause destruction of even the slightest magni-tude. The fact that rodents are less appealing comparedto the more charismatic larger mammals results in themnot being considered as important targets for conserva-tion. Because rodents are generally highly prolific theyare also thought to be less susceptible to environmentaldeterioration.

It is however clear, that rodents are an importantcomponent of the Sri Lanka's biological diversity. Agreater commitment of conservationists, changedattitudes of policy makers and greater awareness amongthe general public are imperative if the rich rodentassemblage of Sri Lanka is to be conserved.

ReferencesCincotta, R.P., J. Wisnewski & R. Engleman 2002. Humanpopulation in the biodiversity hotspots. Nature 404: 990-992.IUCN (1999). The 1999 List of Threatened Flora and Faunaof Sri Lanka. IUCN-Sri Lanka, Colombo.IUCN (2002). 2002 - IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.IUCN, Switzerland.Weerakoon, D. & W.L.D.P.T.S. de A. Goonatilake 2006.Taxonomic status of mammals in Sri Lanka, pp 216-231. In:Bambaradeniya, C. N. B. (Ed.) The Fauna of Sri Lanka. Statusof Taxonomy, Research and Conservation. The World Conser-vation Union, Colombo.Wijesinghe, M.R. & M. de L.Brooke 2004. What causes thevulnerability of endemic animals? A case study from SriLanka. Journal of Zoology 263: 135-140.Wijesinghe, M.R. 2005. Variations in population sizes of fiverodent taxa across a habitat gradient in the Sinharajarainforest, Sri Lanka. Zoos’ Print Journal 21: 2115-2119.Wijesinghe, M.R. & M. de L. Brooke 2005. The distribution ofsmall mammals along a disturbance gradient in Sinharaja, SriLanka. Journal of Tropical Ecology 21: 291-296.

Endemic Sri Lanka spiny mouse (Mus mayori)

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The Indian Giant Squirrel is a diurnal and arborealspecies endemic to southern, western, central andeastern peninsular India, specifically in the WesternGhats, Satpuras and the Eastern Ghats. They arehigh-canopy dwellers usually occurring in tropicalevergreen, semi-evergreen and moist-deciduousforests. Although, widely distributed, they occur inpopulations that are severely fragmented. They havebeen listed as Near Threatened in the IUCN Red List;extensive hunting and habitat loss are the primaryfactors for their population decline. They have anaverage lifespan of about 20 years in captivity andare reproductively active until the age of 12 years inthe wild.

Many aspects regarding the ecology of the IndianGiant Squirrel have not been explored, both in wildand in captive conditions. Hence, an attempt to studythe behaviour and breeding ecology of giant squirrelsin captive conditions was planned. Observations werecarried out on a pair of giant squirrels housed at theMysore Zoo. This paper describes the various aspectsof the Indian Giant Squirrel husbandry and associ-ated issues that were implemented in Mysore Zoo.

Baseline observationsThe enclosure housing the squirrels measured14x14x15 ft and was constructed using chain-linkmesh. The enclosure was quite exposed with novegetation and offered no shelter and hideout for theanimals and also was infested with rodents. Theenclosure lacked complexity and the squirrels spentmost of their time clinging to the mesh. An arbitrarywooden box was placed inside the enclosure as thesole mode of privacy and shelter. The squirrels wereoffered a carbohydrate-rich diet consisting of fruits,bread and milk and vegetables.

Environmental enrichment for the giant squirrelsWith an intention of improving the animals' well beingby providing a stimulating environment and furthersatisfying the behavioural needs of the animals,environmental enrichment was designed with theprimary goals being:

1. Increasing the complexity of the enclosure toprovide a near naturalistic condition2. Provision of shelter and hideouts3. Provision of a more natural and a balanced diet

Giant squirrels being rainforest dwellers rarely leavethe upper-canopy of the forests. An enclosure thathinders or provides no access to the upper reaches is

quite under-stimulating and can have a negativeeffect on the psychological well being of the animals.Bamboo and tree branches of various lengths wereadded to the enclosure. They were placed in a way soas to provide access to most of the unused areasinside the enclosure. The addition of the cagefurniture allowed the animals to explore all the areasof the enclosure that were previously unexplored andalso permitted access to horizontal and verticaldimensions of the enclosure. The cage furnitureincreased the complexity of the enclosure therebypromoting activity among the squirrels. Additionalcage furniture included liana and cotton ropes thatwere interspersed amongst the bamboo and treebranches in varied fashion.

A portion of the roof was covered with fiber sheet tooffer shelter to the animals. Attempts are being madeto grow vegetation inside the enclosure and cerealsare scattered on the floor of the enclosure and thenwatered; upon germination the squirrels feed on them.A mesh guard is also provided so that the squirrelshave access only to the shoots of seedlings (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Growing vegetation inside enclosure. Seedsare scattered and watered serving as fresh food upongermination. A mesh guard insures that the squirrelshave access only to the shoots of seedlings.

The pre-existing box was modified so that the frontportion was covered leaving an entry hole (Figure 2).The box was fixed at a height of around six feetfrom the ground. A new box (Figure 3) was intro-duced and was placed at a greater height (Figure 4).

Notes on Breeding Indian Giant Squirrel (Ratufa indica) at Mysore ZooLakshminarasimha R* and Anil Garg**

* (Corresponding author) Asstt Curator, E-mail:[email protected]; **Avian Consultant,Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens, Mysore.

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The box measured 2x2x3 ft, made of wood, with anentry hole of 6in diameter and an inspection windowon one of the sides. The box has a mesh ladder frominside that extends from the entry hole to the floorof the box, for ease of movement. Soft wood shav-ings were provided as bedding material and in addi-tion straw and thin branches were scattered insidethe enclosure to promote nesting behavior.

The next step included revising the diet and feedingregimes. The changes were intended to provide amore natural and balanced diet. Different types ofseeds like jack fruit seeds, sunflower seeds, saf-flower seeds, sprouts and groundnuts were includedin their diet. Occasionally they were also offeredshoots and inflorescences as food treats. In additionto the above-mentioned changes in the diet, thesquirrels were offered commercially available catfood regularly (15 pellets approximately per animal).The cat food served to increase the protein contentof the diet. In order to increase the activity in thesquirrels, some of the seeds were scattered on thefloor of the enclosure so the animals spend more timeforaging.

Observations following the administration ofenvironmental enrichment.The addition of cage furniture like bamboo, liana,cotton ropes and tree branches has accounted for aconsiderable increase in the complexity of the enclo-sure, thus promoting more activity among the animals.The changes in the diet and the feeding regimes haveresulted in the animals getting a more natural andbalanced diet. The scattering of the food has re-sulted in an increase in the foraging time of theanimals. The inclusion of nest boxes in the enclosurehas resulted in the squirrels using it considerably inthe late evenings and has also incited nestingbehaviour in the squirrels.

Following the implementation of the environmentalenrichment, the giant squirrels also bred for the firsttime since their acquisition around 3 years back!Detailed studies are being taken up to document thereproductive behaviour and parental care in thesespecies so as to fill in lacunae of data with regard tothe ecology of the species in captive conditions.

Figure 2 - The old box was modified so that the frontportion was covered leaving an entry hole.

Figure 3: A new box (below) was introduced andplaced at a greater height (Figure 4) above.

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With support from Rufford SmallGrants, UK, Small Mammals Conser-vation and Research Foundation,SMCRF, Kathmandu, Nepal startedits project: Detailed monitoringsurvey of bats and their conserva-tion through radio awarenessprogramme and outreach programmeto schoolchildren in KathmanduValley from Godawari-Phulchowki,one of the project sites among 20sites during 1-3 November, 2009. Ateam of five was led by SanjanThapa.

Day 1. After two-hours drive fromLagankhel, Lalitpur we reachedGodawari in the late morning. Weconducted a scheduled survey to thetwo communities namely; Tamangand Bahun-Chettri with an objectiveto assess the local perception andknowledge of bats. We found thatthey were aware of them but noeffort was processed for theirconservation hitherto. In theafternoon we visited two schoolsand asked permission and theircooperation to conduct awarenesslectures to the schoolchildren.Following this we searched andpointed out the area and sites formist-netting.

Before the sunset we arranged threemistnets and stretched them usingbamboo poles along the small pooland stream in Janajagaran commu-nity forest. At 17:45hr we noted thefirst flight appearance. The batdetector recorded calls between 35and 60 kHz frequencies. Weestimated three species from theflight observations, which lasteduntil 18:59hr.

Day 2. The morning started withhiking to the nearby bat cave, themouth of which was bounded bylarge rocks lying on the side andbelow. The entrance was a difficultslit and we dropped down hanging toa large root. The 100m was a broadpassage which ended with a large

Reporting from GodawariSanjan Thapa*, Suchieta Shrestha, Sagar Dahal, Arjun Thapa and Rameshwor Kaphle

ScheduledSurvey atTamangCommunity

Schoolchildrenwithbanner ofsponsor.

*Small Mammals Conservation and Research Foundation, New Baneshwor,Kathmandu, Nepal. [email protected]

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dome-like area with a lot of smallshort routes and very difficult to gothrough. A small colony about sixindividuals of Hipposideros armigerwere seen hanging at the domeshaped space. A few small batsescaping from the difficult smalland short routes were successfullyscoop-netted.

We took morphometric measurementsand photographs and immediatelyreleased bats without any stress. Weidentified them in the spot asRhinolophus affinis and Myotisnipalensis.

After lunch we organized an out-reach programme to schoolchildrenin Crescent Academy. We delivereda 45min lecture on awareness andconservation of bats to 100 studentsof standards 6, 7 and 8. Thelecture included an introduction,habit, habitat, ecology, importanceand need for conservation. Wedisplayed flex signage regarding thematter, distributed a brochure,demonstrated the application of a

Hipposideros armiger inside the cave

Using bat detector at mistnetting site

Project team on the way after closing mistnetting

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bat detector and finally took a groupphoto.

Before sunset we deployed mist netts inthe open field near by a narrow streamby the bus stand. We noted the batsemerging at 18:00hr. The bat detectorrecorded the echolocation call of 45-60kHz. However, we were unable to netany bat that night.

Day3. Again we organized an outreachprogramme in the next school, the CPSResidential English Boarding School. Wemade a presentation to 60 students ofclasses 5, 6 and 7. We advertised theradio awareness programme for theconservation of bats through the poster.They were attached to the notice boardsof schools, offices, local NGOs etc. Weannounced the same to school childrenalso.

In the evening once again we deployedmist nets at the picnic spot, behind thebotanical garden. It was interesting tofind bat guano of few days ago in thestatue of Shiva Linga of the templeswhich indicate that bats used to restthere. We placed the mist nets nearby astream and a medium water pool. Therewe noted the emergence of bats flight at17:41hr. Magenta Bat Mkllb bat detec-tor recorded 45-60 kHz. We keenlyobserved continuous flight just 1 foot to10 feet, over swinging and circling andsometimes dipping into water surface.

The interesting behaviour observationcame to an end after the bats disap-peared at 19:20hr and the unsuccessfulnetting continued when mist nets werebrought down at 21:00hr.

This monitoring study revealedoccurrence of three species atGodawari. As the bat flight was seenmaximum, we can expect many morespecies can be documented from thissite in next phase of the project. Wecan conclude that Godawari-Phulchowkiarea is a good potential habitat for bats.Lectures to school children wereconducted at two schools and we believethe program has aided positive impact inthe conception of bats to the schoolchildren and the locals.

Lecture and demonstrating bat detector applicationat CPS Residential School

Rhinolophus affinis

Myotis nipalensis

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Many insectivorous and frugivorous bats use nightroosts for a variety of activities, including feeding,grooming, mating and resting in between foraging.Biologists usually obtain clues to the presence of nightroosts from bits of discarded fruits or insects and pilesof droppings. Night roosts may harbour solitary bats,male-female pairs, mother-young or social groups thatlive together in day-roosts. Night roosts are located invariety of places including areas beneath bridges, inabandoned buildings, thatch houses, or on branches oftrees (Kunz 1982).

Avoidance of bright moonlight has been documented insmall terrestrial mammals, including Allenbys GerbilGerbillus allenbyi (Kotler et al. 1991); BannertailKangaroo Rat Dipodomys spectabilis (Lockard & Owings1974); Greater Egyptian Sand Gerbil Gerbilluspyramidum (Kotler et al. 1991); and in a number ofspecies of bats. Examples include one megachiropteran(Indian False Vampire Bat Megaderma lyra (Subbaraj &Balasingh 1996)), and three microchiropterans(Jamaican Fruit-eating Bat Artibeus jamaicensis,(Morrison 1978)); pond bat, Myotis dasycneme (Voûte etal. 1974); and Common Vampire Bat Desmodus rotundus(Turner 1975). The broad occurrence of lunar phobiasuggests strong selective pressures in nocturnal animalsfor moonlight avoidance. Safety from predators andavailability of prey could both provide the necessaryselective pressure.

This insectivorous bat, Hipposideros speoris (forearm50mm and bodyweight 13g) is a common species of Indiaand the presence of nose-leaf aids in the echolocation.The study area, an ancient temple with many unuseddark chambers, lies in the Krishnapuram Village,Tirunelveli District. A colony of about 150 bats inhabitsa dark chamber of the temple. The night roost is locatedvery near to the day-roost in a temple tower at a heightof about 20m from the ground. The study areapredominantly includes ponds and agricultural fields.Weekly observations were made in the night roost toassess the activity pattern of the bats in relation to fourdifferent phases of moon in a month during March2004. Bat counts were made once in every five minutesfrom 18.00 to 06.00 hr.

The foraging pattern of H. speoris was to emerge fromthe day roost after sunset and fly to the foragingground or to wait in the night roost till the requireddarkness set in and then forage. Normally a bimodalpattern of night activity was seen in this species. Thestudy reveals that after emergence from the day roost,H. speoris engaged in night roosting in between theforaging bouts. The bats actively flew around the

Lunar Phobia in a Microchiropteran Bat, Hipposideros speorisS. Suthakar Isaac

Research Department of Zoology, St.John s College,Palayamkottai. 627 002 TN [email protected]

streetlights and nearby paddy fields catching insectsand visited the night roost at random. The number ofbats found in night roosting indirectly showed thenumber of bats foraging at any given time. The nightroosting pattern shows that the foraging peak occurredimmediately after dusk followed by another peakbefore dawn.

The night roosting behaviour with reference todifferent moon phases is shown in the figure 1 A, B, C &D. During the new moon, the foraging activity wascontinuous from dusk to dawn, a normal bimodal patternof foraging activity (Figure 1A). From the first quarterto full moon despite the presence of a relatively brightmoon after sunset, the bats left the day roost but mostof them stayed in the night roost till around 21.00hr.After moon set, the bats flew from the night roost andactively foraging until dawn (Figure 1B). In contrast,during full moon, the number of bats night roosting wasrelatively high from 19.00 hr till the pre-dawn hours(04.00hr) (Figure 1C). During the last quarter, the moonrises in the mid night, so the bats begun to forage fromthe dusk and return to night roost about 24.00 hr andremained till 04.00hr (Figure 1D).

A radio-tracking study of the foraging behaviour of theJamaican Fruit Bat (Artibeus jamaicensis) in aPanamanian forest revealed that searching and feedingflights were timed as if to minimize flying in brightmoonlight. Long flights in search of new fruit treeswere observed in A. jamaicensis only during the newmoon half of the lunar month (Morrison, 1978). Thenightly activity patterns of Noctilio leporinus, apiscivorous neotropical bat, were documented by visualobservation over one lunar cycle at a large dock inGolfito, Costa Rica. The activity patterns werecompared to the intensity of the moonlight, and a strongcorrelation between darkness and activity wasobserved. This correlation has been observed in manyspecies of mammals and may indicate adaptation bypotential prey species to avoid predation by visuallyoriented night-time predators and/or an adaptation bypredators to maximize hunting success. Decreasedpredator effectiveness would encourage potential preyitems to become more active in low light conditions. Batsmay feed longer on dark nights due to decreaseddanger from predators (Bork 2006).

Lang et al (2006) show that the bats reduced activityduring moonlight correlates with a reduction in theactivity levels of katydids, a major source of food for

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perch-hunting bat, Lophostomasilvicolum. Karlsson et al (2002)investigated the impact of moonlighton the swarming activity of bats atan abandoned mine in southernSweden. The mine serves as ahibernaculum for six species ofinsectivorous bats. They suggestthat the insectivorous bats at highlatitudes may not have been exposedto significant nocturnal predatorpressure, leading to the evolution oflunar phobia, as have many tropicalbats. From the presentobservations, it may be concludedthat the moonlight has an influence,on this microchiropteran bat H.speoris, by reducing foragingactivity and enhance night roostingbehaviour. Moon light avoidancemay be an exogenous factor toprobably reduces losses to visuallyoriented predators.

References:Bork, K.S. 2006. Lunar phobia in thegreater fishing bat Noctilio

leporinus (Chiroptera:Noctilionidae). Rev. Biol. Trop.54(4): 1117-23.

Karlsson, B., J. Eklöf and J. Rydell2002. No lunar phobia in swarminginsectivorous bats (familyVespertilionidae). Journal ofZoology, 256(4): 473-477

Kotler, B.P., J.S. Brown & O. Hasson.1991. Factors affecting gerbilforaging behavior and rates of owlpredation. Ecology 72(2): 249-260.

Kunz, T.H. 1982. Roosting ecology ofbats, pp 1-55. In: T. H. Kunz, Editor,Ecology of Bats, Plenum, New York.

Lang, A. B., Kalko, E.K.V. Römer,H., Bockholdt, C. and Dechmann.D.K.N. 2005. Activity levels of batsand katydids in relation to the lunarcycle. Oecologia 146: 650–666

Lockard, R.B. & D.H. Owins. 1974.Moon-related surface activity ofbannertail (Dipodomys spectabilis)

and Fresno (D. nitratoides) kangaroorats. Anim. Behav.22: 262-273.

Morrison, D.W. 1978. Lunar phobiain a neotropical fruit bat, Artibeusjamaicensis (Chiroptera:Phyllostomidae). Animal Behaviour26: 852-855.

Subbaraj, R. & J. Balasingh. 1986.Night roosting and ‘lunar phobia’ inIndian false vampire bat MegadermaLyra. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 93:1-7.

Turner, D.C. 1975. The Vampire Bat:A Field Study in behavior andecology. John Hopkins University,Baltimore, Maryland, USA. 159 p.

Voûte, A.M., J.W. Sluiter & M.P.Grimm. 1974. The influence of thenatural light-dark cycle on theactivity rhythm of pond bats (Myotisdasycneme Boie, 1825) duringsummer. Oecologia (Berlin) 17: 221-243.

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Greatful thanks to Robert Locke of BCI andEditor of BATS for permitting us to reprint thisinteresting article on bats and climate change.Editor.

The Rocky Mountains of Colorado offer a wondrousmosaic of habitats from lowland prairies to treelessalpine tundra. At the 50th parallel near Boulder, theContinental Divide reaches its easternmost point in theUnited States, producing steep and convoluted reliefacross which climate and ecology differ dramatically.The abrupt topography compresses habitats andecotones (the transitions between habitats) intoremarkably condensed communities of animals andplants. Thus ecologists can study a diversity ofecosystems in one local area that is equivalent inscope and richness to that which occurs across the1200 miles (2000 kilometers) between Boulder andthe Canadian Arctic. For bats, this remarkablelandscape provides for the coexistence of a diverseassemblage of species.

My students at the University of Northern Coloradoand I have been conducting research on batpopulations in the region for 13 years. Thispersistence illuminates long-term population trends inthis richly varied medley of bats. The underlyingquestions of our studies have been (1) do the limitedwater resources of arid landscapes influence roost-site preferences and reproductive ecology of batsand (2) does water availability influence how batpopulations and communities are structured?

Our research produced a number of unexpectedresults, especially concerning what appears to besurprisingly complex cooperative behavior, as well asmineral acquisition, maternal- roost clustering and thecritical importance of near-roost water sources formilk production by mother bats. After 13 years, weare beginning to stitch together the natural history ofthe nine resident bat species and the importance ofwater sources to stability and sustainability ofpopulations.

Unfortunately, our data also strongly suggest apotentially devastating impact of climate change onthese bats: increasing regional temperatures,declining precipitation and reduced stream flowappear to negatively influence the ability of femalesto reproduce.

Upon leaving their high-elevation hibernation sites inlate April or early May, bats descend into the food-rich lowlands. Males and females, which hibernatedtogether, break away into bachelor and maternitygroups. Females typically return year after year tothe same rock-crevice roosts, usually located near

small-stream water sources. We consistently findmaternity roosts of various species located close torelatively stable but small-scale water features.

Some of these pools are less than six feet (1.8meters) in diameter, yet they buzz with activity aftersunset, as hundreds of bats descend to the surface todrink. They must replenish water lost during theirdaytime siestas within sun-baked rock crevices wherehigher roost temperatures help with gestation. Somebats have been shown to lose more than 30 percent oftheir body mass through evaporative water loss over asingle 12-hour roosting cycle. When females arelactating water-rich milk for their young, water lossmay even be higher.

The combination of hot, dry roosts, small body sizeand lactation suggests that reproduction in thesefemale bats is a staggering effort that likely explainswhy we find maternity colonies of multiple speciesnear reliable pools of water. At dusk, water –stressed females descend to drink soon afteremerging from their day roosts, skimming the surfacemultiple times before leaving the area.

It is not only the crevice-roosting bats that come todrink. At many watering sites, we catch all nineresident species, including less abundant species,such as the hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) and silver-haired bat (Lasionycteris noctivagans) that use treesas roosts. Their presence increases the already-highnumber of the bats trying to squeeze into these smallpools for a drink. Nights following the hottest, driestdays correlate with the highest activity levels atwater sources, where, at first glance, the scene lookslike sheer chaos.

Upon closer examination , however, the apparentlylawless free-for-all turns out to have a definite andunexpected order and process. As various speciesleave their roost sites within minutes of each other,they do not all come to the pool simultaneously.Instead, they arrive in species or colony groups in aspecific and predictable order night after night, yearafter year.

Peaks of activity are distinctive for each species. Weconfirmed this phenomenon by recording exactcapture times of each bat that visited to drink and bycompiling data over several years. The pattern wasconsistent : bats drinking at these small pools areorganized by predictable visitation times, withoutwhich individual access to the water would beproblematic at best.

The Threat of Climate ChangeRick A. Adams

*Professor of Biology at the University of NorthernColorado n Greeley. He studies the ecology and evolutionof bats.

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Even more astonishing, however, is the discovery thatthe bats actually line up to drink, rather than simplydiving in from every direction. The chaos of batszipping and milling a few feet above the water iscompletely at odds with what is happening at thesurface. Working with Dr. James Simmons of BrownUniversity, we used a thermal-imaging camera torecord this amazing behavior at the smallest, mostactive pools.

All bats that approached for a drink did so singly.Each one came in from a specific direction andfollowed a drinking pathway – not unlike a landingstrip at an airport. Further, the film revealed thatbats entering the ‘drinking queue’ did so by making awide turn away from other bats above the pool, thencircling into the precise approach path. We observedmultiple bats entering the drinking path one after theother and following one another across the water’ssurface in a single-line approach.

While filming in July, when the pups begin to fly, wewatched this finely tuned drinking game suddenlybreak down as some bats caused near-collisions bytrying to drink from the “wrong” direction. We canonly suppose that these were inexperienced juveniles,perhaps making their first attempt at water-holeetiquette. When this occurred, the bat that was in thecorrect pathway would call out a distinctive, audiblebuzz at the wayward intruder. It appears that youngbats need to learn the rules of the game from adults.

We have found that female bats apparently candetermine the mineral content of drinking water andthat they lead their young to pools with higher levelsof dissolved calcium, perhaps to help with skeletaldevelopment (see “The Lure of Dirt,” BATS , Winter2006). Females benefit from these high-mineral poolsbecause insects provide scant calcium and theytypically end up calcium-deficient during theirreproductive period. In some cases, we have radiotracked lactating females flying several miles toreach small, inconspicuous but calcium-rich poolshidden in the forest, bypassing more obvious watersources to reach them. We found no apparentrelationship between male bats and these high-calciumdrinking opportunities.

But while mineral content may play a role in whichpools adult females and their young visit, theproximity of water to maternity roosts is the mostcritical aspect. We demonstrated this through anexperiment in summer 2006. We marked 29 femalefringed myotis (Myotis thysanodes) from a maternitycolony by inserting a passive integrated transponder –a PIT tag – just beneath the skin of females that wereeither lactacting or non reproductive. The tiny tagsdo not require batteries and can be read by a scannerto identify the individual.

We places an antenna (the scanner) in a small poolnear the roost site to record visitation patterns ofbats of known reproductive status. The results weresobering. Lactating females drank at the pool 13times more often (236 visits) than non reproductivefemales (18 visits) over an 11 day period. Lactatingfemales clearly have very high water requirementsand having a water source near the maternity colonymay be one of the criteria females use in choosingroost sites.

Next, we plotted our 13 years of data against annualweather conditions, including mean monthly hightemperature, mean monthly precipitation and meanmonthly stream-discharge rates. What we found wasdisconcerting. In year with warmer, drier conditions,reproductive outcomes dropped precipitously. Thelong-term trend in the data showed a steady increasein numbers of non reproductive females capturedduring such years. In the warmest, driest year of ourstudy, 2007, more than 50 percent of the adultfemales we captured were non reproductive – a hugedifference from years when weather conditions werecloser to average and only 11 to 15 percent ofcaptured females were non reproductive. Virtually allclimate-change models predict warmer and driersummers in this region.

Analyzing the data showed that the availability ofwater and especially precipitation were most closelycorrelated to reproductive status. Precipitation, ofcourse, feeds local streams and our data reveal asudden crash in female reproduction when flow ratesof Boulder Creek (the only drainage in our field areathat is monitored for flow rates) falls below 247cubic feet (7 cubic meters) per second. When thislarge stream falls to such a low flow rate, smallerstreams near roost sites may, in fact, be almostcompletely dry. This sudden crash in reproductivelyactive females implies that there is a threshold ofminimum water availability required to support localbat populations. These data, of course, fit well withour PIT tag study of female reproduction andvisitation frequency to water sources.

We often think of bats as highly mobile mammalscapable of travelling large distances to forage andfind water. Maternity roost sites, however, providewell-established anchors that help support local batpopulations over the long term. Females return tothese sites year to give birth to and raise their young,and females in maternity colonies seem to resistabandoning such areas, even when water resourcesdwindle. Instead of leaving, females apparently areshutting down – or being forced physiologically tohalt – reproductive output that the environment can nolonger support. The long-term risk to thesepopulations appears substantial.

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Continued from previous page

Climate change in western North America is expectedto increase in coming years, with still-greaterreductions in summer precipitation and wintersnowpack. Already the loss of accumulatedsnowpack, combined with spring runoffs that begin upto a month earlier than in the past and reducedsummer rainfall, has measurably affected regionalpatterns of stream flow. Thus, the outlook for futurewater availability in natural ecosystems is grim.Climate-change models for the Colorado River Basinpredict that for every 0.6 degree F (1-degree C)increase, we can expect 24 percent less snow, 3

percent less summer precipitation and 36 percent lesswater storage.

If there is one spark of hope in all this, it is that wecan begin to mitigate some of these effects bydeveloping management plans that include artificialwater sources to support high-risk maternity colonies.Climate change is upon us, and we can do little to stemthe tide in the short term, but fast track solutions toimmediate problems may just be enough to avoid asudden collapse of distressed ecosystems.

The Impact of Climate Change on Batssubmitted by Naveen Sundar, Brian Kelly on 4/30/02 .Global Climate Change -Western Program-Miami UniversityCheck out our Report on The Impact of Climate Change on Bats

Executive Summary: This project attempted to link global changein climate and ecosystem change. We specifically looked at theecosystems concerning bats. Bats are important creatures and it isgenerally uncommon to find studies done on bats and their role inecosystems. This paper looked at the increasing globaltemperature rise as an indicator of how the life of bats havechanged in their respective ecosystems. For this, we looked attemperature data gathered worldwide more recently and up toabout 150 years ago. We analyzed the data in order to note anytemperature and bat population trends that were of relevance tothis paper. So,.....why not check out our Final Report on TheImpact of Climate Change on Batshttp://jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu/climatechange02/FinalArticles/BatDraft-TheFinalApril302.html

Potential Effects of Global Change on BatsMichael A. Bogan, Wildlife Research Biologist, BiologicalResources Division, USGS and Research Professor of Biology,University of New Mexico.

It is generally believed that bat populations have declinedworldwide in recent decades. Because bats have low reproductiverates, populations are very susceptible to elevated mortality ordepressed recruitment. There is developing concern about theconservation status of bats as many species of bats areincreasingly affected by multiple actions of humans. Bats facemultiple threats of ignorance, suspicion, pesticide poisoning, roostdestruction and closure, habitat loss, over-exploitation, andextermination as pests. Among mammals, bats are the second mostdiverse order (after rodents) and occur on all continents exceptAntarctica. Bats often range widely in their foraging activitiesand habitat modifications such as urbanization, agriculture, andother land use practices may affect local plant and insectpopulations and thus the food resources of bats. At present,however, virtually nothing is known of the specific effects ofglobal warming on bats although certain predictions can be madebased on the biology of bats. (see url for more)http://geochange.er.usgs.gov/sw/impacts/biology/bats/

Bat deaths linked to climate changeBrian Nearing, Staff writer, timesunionUnusual weather may disrupt feeding patterns, causing starvation.Friday, March 7, 2008

ALBANY -- A mysterious affliction that has killed thousands ofhibernating bats in the Northeast is likely tied to recent mildwinters, rather than a fungus around the mammals' mouths,according to a state wildlife pathologist. While an investigationby the state Department of Environmental Conservation iscontinuing, DEC pathologist Ward Stone said warmer winterscaused by climate change, rather than a mysterious white fungus,has been killing off thousands of hibernating bats in their cavesthis winter. Stone, often a renegade at DEC during his long careerthere, said his studies of about 150 dead bats found the milky-colored fungus that has been dubbed "white nose syndrome" hasnot been killing the bats. MORE at http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories story.asp?storyID=669869&category=REGION&newsdate=3/7/2008

Bats and climate changeTony Hutson, Inf.EUROBATS.AC11.30. In 2005, the UK’s Defra commissioned a review Climate Changeand Migratory Species

1. This was presented to CMS CoP8

(Nairobi, November 2005) at a workshop on climate change. Thereview covers marine mammals, terrestrial mammals, bats, birds,turtles, fish (with cephalopods and plankton) and insects, and dealsin particular with the UK and its overseas territories. The reportcan be viewed at www.defra.gov.uk

2 or as CoP.Inf8.19 at

www.cms.int3

. For the bats, the report concentrates ... MORE athttp://www.eurobats.org/documents/pdf/AC11/Inf_AC11_30_ClimateChange.pdf.

Vampire bats offer clues to the future,Shahroukh Mistry & Arnulfo Moreno-Valdez. Vol.26, No.2,Summer 08Overheated flying foxes, panting and frantically fanningthemselves with their wings, fell from the trees in New SouthWales, Australia, six years ago. Up to 3,500 black and grey-headed flying foxes died on the ground beneath their roosts,victims, researchers believe, of heat waves that pushedtemperatures to 108 degrees F (42º C). In this era of loomingclimate change, such scorching temperatures are occurring moreoften. Tragically so: since 1994, more than 30,000 flying foxeshave died in New South Wales, apparently because of at least 19episodes of extreme heat. MORE at http://www.batcon.org/index.php/media-and-info/bats-archives.html?task=viewArticle&magArticleID=1014

Bats and Climate change on the internet : just type bats climate change impact

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The Training Tale of Hari AdhikariSally Walker

Hari Adhikari is one of ouryoung batters who cameonto the scene after GeethaShreshta started her batclubs in Nepal and startedlooking for people to speakat the meetings. Studentsfrom the Forest College inPokhara began to getinterested and write to usand Hari was among them.Hari was among the trainees in the field techniquestraining on volant and non-volant small mammals, whichwas organized in Nepal by CCINSA, RISCINSA, ZOOand WILD. After that he organized some field trainingsto members of BAT FRIENDS and Natural ResourcesResearch and Conservation Center (NaReCon) here inNepal to produce more bat researchers andconservationists for doing research and conservationworks.

Hari also had a grant funded by Chester Zoo for“Status and Distribution of Bats in Palpa District ofWestern Nepal” which required expertise in voucherspecimens which Hari did not have.

I’d been wondering what to do about that when Hariwrote requesting inclusion in our Bhutan trainingscheduled several months away. It is our policy not toinvite many people from outside when conducting in a“new” country so that their people get all advantage, andalso Hari needed advanced training in evaluation ofvoucher specimens. We had a taxonomy training coming

up also, in Madurai which would be more advanced but Ifelt Hari needed another kind of basic groundingbefore undertaking this course. I immediately thoughtof our great colleague and friend, Dr. P.O. Nameer whois Associate Professor (Wildlife) & Head, Centre forWildlife Studies at his University, Kerala AgriculturalUniversity, Thrissur. I asked Nameer if he could hostHari and provide some of the kind of instruction heneeded.

Not that I expected any other response, Nameer gotback immediately and proposed a programme for Harithat would include:· Mist-netting sessions· Preparation of voucher specimens· Wet and dry method of museum specimen preparation· Exercise on carding (preparation on dry skins)· Extraction of skull· Analysis of fecal sample from fruit bats andinsectivorous bats· DNA studies (taking the tissue sample, digestion, DNAextraction, gel electrophoresis, DNA purification andquantification, PCR amplification, PCR purification andsequencing of amplified gene)· Field visit to Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary andPeechi-Vazhani Wildlife Sanctuary to study bat roosts.

Later, Nameer reported that Hari was also askedprepare an annotated checklist of mammals of Nepal,using Wilson and Reeder (2005) and provided withwhatever literature that the centre had on bats. Thiswas a good grounding indeed and Hari wrote a glowingmail and thanks.

Hari identify in a trapped bat in Kerala

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Hari also got an opportunity to visitour office in Coimbatore and evenattend the Madurai Taxonomytraining before returning to Nepal.Now he has received a scholarshipfor graduate studies in Germany.Hari’s Report on southern Indiantraining is below.

“Overall the training was good in allaspects. Being a student from Nepalwhere all these new technologiesused for bats are not available, Igot wonderful chance to learndifferent techniques to study bats.The resource person conveyeddifficult ideas in simple ways so asto be understandable by all level ofpeople working on bats.

I worked for bat speciesidentification by using the keydeveloped by Dr. C. Srinivasulu andthese keys were made in easierways, useful for people of all levelof knowledge. The practical onecholocation and taxonomyidentifications of bats was veryuseful for me as I have to identifyspecies when I go back to Nepal.Without these trainings, I think Iwould not be able to workintensively on bats. This training hasmade me able to guide few studentsto work on bats in Nepal.

I learned different information onecholocation and types of detectorsand got to handle them and gave aglance to different software used inthe field of echolocation recordingand use. I gathered muchinformation on bats and bat studies.I also felt comfortable to expressconfusions and have discussionsregarding taxonomy andidentifications that I had facedduring my previous days whileworking on these small bats.” -- HariAdkari.

We wish Hari and other batters wellin their studies and express ourgratitude to the experts who comeover to South Asia and teach peopleto study what we call the “non-charismatic mini-vertebrates”.

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The Lesser False Vampire Bat Megaderma spasma isdistributed in India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, South-eastAsia to Java, Philippines and Molucca Islands (BrossetA., 1962; Bates P.J.J.& Harrison D.L.,1997; BlandfordW.T., 1891). In India, it has been found in Maharashtra,Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh,West Bengal, Assam, Mizoram and Andaman Islands.(Bates P.J.J. & Harrison D. L., 1997). Brosset A, 1962states in his paper The Bats of Central and WesternIndia that this species was seen only in a few places inthe Western Ghats including the coastal area, where itappears to be rare and localized and seems to be aspecies of humid and forested areas. So far this specieshas been recorded from Thana, Rajapur, Borivali,Kanheri and Chanda in Maharashtra (Bates P.J.J. &Harrison D. L., 1997). Yet, it has not been recordedfrom Phansad Wildlife Sanctuary.

We sighted this Bat in the Phansad WLS on 23rd August2008 at around 12 noon. The sanctuary is about 45 kmwest to the Western Ghats mountain range. A colony offour was sighted in an abandoned concrete constructionin the sanctuary. Available literature indicates that themammalian fauna of the sanctuary has not beendocumented. This short note might be a pioneering stepin the documentation of the mammalian fauna of theSanctuary.

AcknowledgementI thank, Dr. Kaluram Senacha for confirming theidentification of this species.

Sighting of the Lesser False Vampire Bat Megaderma spasma in Phansad WildlifeSanctuary, Dist. Raigad, Maharashtra, India.Nikhil Bhopale1 and Kavita Malya

1 Bombay Natural History Society, Hornbill House, S B SinghRoad, Mumbai 400001 Contact no. 09819330222, mail-id:[email protected]

References:Brosset, A. (1962). The Bats of Central and WesternIndia Part II, Journal of Bombay Natural HistorySociety, Vol. 59 (2): 583-624.Paul J.J. Bates & David L. Harrison (1997). Bats of theIndian Subcontinent, Harrison Zoological MuseumPublication.Blanford, W.T. (1891). The Fauna of British India,Ceylon and Burma (Taylor & Francis Ltd.)

Megaderma spasma ©Nikhil Bhopale

Netting technique, capture and handling of Pteropus giganteusSudhakaran M.R.1, and Swamidoss, D.P.2

The Indian Flying Fox Pteropus giganteus is a hardyanimal and is hard to capture and handle. Mist-nettingtechnique for capturing different species of bats iswell illustrated by Kunz & Kurta (1988). This paperdeals with the mist-netting technique, capture andhandling of P. giganteus.

Mist net and erecting techniqueVarious types of mist nets are available in the marketfor capturing of various flying animals. We use a mistnet made of black or blue nylon thread of 0.1mmdiameter, and a mesh size of 6.5 x 6.5 sq inches with anet size of 65 / 70 x 65 / 70 or 100 x 100 sq meshesfor capturing P.giganteus. A nylon rope of 3mmdiameter is strung to all four sides of the net as shownin the figure. Blue nets show good results undermoonlight too.

The nylon rope at the top extends to one feet on boththe sides away from the net and the bottom is

attached with two or three tail ropes towards theground. Two lengthy ropes (depending on the height ofthe fruiting tree and the length to be used fordragging the net) and one end of the rope was laidover the top branch of the fruiting tree, or put over apole which is tied on the fruiting tree to give a goodheight of 0.5 to 1 meter above the tree and the ropeshould be free not to intertwined in branches. Anotherrope could be tied at a tree or pole of the same height,as fruiting tree at any distance on the opposite side(up to 100 to 150 meters from fruiting tree). Beforejoining the mist net to the two ropes, a weight (e.g.:stone: ca. 200 to 250 gm) has to be attached at both

1. Department of Advanced Zoology and BiotechnologySri Paramakalyani College, Alwarkurichi, Tirunelveli.2. Department of Animal Behaviour and PhysiologyMadurai Kamaraj University, Madurai.Email: [email protected]

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the ends of the rope. Both the ropes with weights haveto be attached and one end of the rope which comesunder the fruiting tree (dragging rope) has to dragdown hence the weights attached will go up andnetting height could be determined, the ropes could beadjusted in order to erect and drag down the net in asafer place. As the height and place of netting wasdetermined, mist net was attached as shown in figure,and it could be erected. Once the net reaches therequired height, the tail rope has to be fixed in theground by using nails. The dragging rope that helps thenet to drag up and down should be marked with amarker (inserting a nail or twig in to the rope) at thefixed position as shown in the figure that helps the netto heave up and down. Without altering any changes tothe net and fixed tail ropes, net could be erected upand down by adjusting the dragging rope.

AdvantagesMostly mist nets available in the market are havingpouches. P.giganteus flies at a height mostly above thefruiting tree and mostly above the canopy level, theyflies at lower level only near the fruiting tree. Henceit could avoid mist net with pouches which was erectedat a height of >50 feet, that may blown by air,therefore the mist nets used for capture ofP.giganteus should not have pouches. As we are usingnets with larger mesh size; we could avoid the fallingof other small mega and micro chiropterans, whichhelp us to avoid the risk of dragging the net up anddown. If the mist net or rope fastens with thebranches in tree, it can be removed easily there byadjusting the tail rope. The fixed tail rope helps thenet not to wave or blown in the air. While mist netswas erected over a stream, the net could be adjustedand kept in control by adjusting the tail rope; when abat was caught it could be removed from mist netwithout getting into stream there by standing on thebank and or over the bridge by using tail rope. Markerin the dragging rope helps to erect the net at correctheight by using the available moonlight (because using

lights under the fruiting tree makes bats to fly away)and also the tail rope helps to find the required height.

Using of a hammockThe place where the net to be drag down should befree from small shrubs and the place should becleaned for 1 meter breadth and to the length of thenet or small herbs and shrubs could be covered withplastic sheets to avoid the damage/intertwine of net.To avoid this, protective hammock (Shapely et al.,2001) could be used, but when dragging, bats maytangle with mist net with its large claws and it makeshard to remove. Hammock also makes difficult to usethe tail rope, but hammock can be used under practice.

Handling of bat caught in mist netOnce the bat was caught in the mist net, by releasingthe tied dragging rope the net could be bring down tothe appropriate place, and weight attached helps thenet to come down quickly. By using gloves, bat has tobe captured from its ventral side with one hand andanother hand should hold the neck carefully from itsdorsal side and then only hand at the ventral sideshould be removed to capture the neck from the dorsalside. If we directly caught its neck from the dorsalside there is a chance for it to bite on the gloves, if itbites on the gloves, it will be very hard to remove. Andthere by removing the hand at the ventral side the batcould be removed easily, the forearm and fingers ofthe bat has to be caught by using fingers of the handthat captures the neck and the bat has to be carefullyremoved from the net and handled. The neck of batshould held carefully, to avoid the risk of damagingthe fingers bats mouth could be tied with a rope or asmall cover made of straws, which was like a cap withelastic rope could be used to cover the mouth whiletaking measurements. As it was having hard and sharpclaws, it may cause injuries and wounds to our handthat holds the bat and to avoid this bat has to behandled carefully and lengthy gloves that cover theentire forearm could be used.

Netting technique for capturing Pteropus giganteus

a- Weightattached to therope (ca.200-250 g)b - Draggingropec-Marker in thedragging roped- Tail rope

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Obituary

Prof Dr. A. Gopalakrishna, Former Director, Institute ofScience, Nagpur, India, passed away on September 19, 2008.Arkalgud Gopalakrishna was born on 20 October 1922, inChamarajanagar, Karnataka. He schooled at Malleswaram HighSchool, Bangalore and was awarded B.Sc.(Hons.) and D.Sc.Degree in Zoology from Mysore University. His career began as alecturer and researcher in Central College, Bangalore, and latershifted to the then College of Science, Nagpur, during 1946. Hewas initiated into bat research by Prof P.A. Ramakrishna also ofof Central College, Bangalore and Prof M.A. Moghe of College ofScience, Nagpur.

Prof. Gopalakrishna published over 100 papers on differentaspects of reproductive biology of Indian bats, and these arewidely cited. He published in 1947 his first research paper on theembryology of bats. He was awarded a US population councilresearch scholarship in 1955, working with William Wimsatt atCornell University, USA and visited several other researchcentres.

He was responsible for starting mammalian reproductive physiology and embryology as a special subjectfor M.Sc. Zoology at the College of Science, Nagpur, and was instrumental in setting up a world-renowned research centre for bat studies in its Department of Zoology. He was the moving spirit behindupgrading the College of Science as Institute of Science and was the longest serving Director of thisinstitute until his retirement in March 1981. For a short spell of one year he served as Director ofInstitute of Science, Mumbai. He received the Maharashtra State Best Teacher Award in 1979. He wasawarded Emeritus Professorship by U.G.C. New Delhi and worked at the Dept. of Zoology, ShivajiUniversity, Kolhapur, Maharashtra. A Gold Medal has been instituted in his name at Nagpur Universityand also a scholarship for P.G. students at the Institute of Science, Nagpur.

Prof. Gopalakrishna was instrumental in shaping the career of thousands of students. Many scholars andwell-known teachers consider him their role model. He has a wide circle of friends from different walksof life to whom he was a friend, guide and philosopher. He and this writer reported the survival ofinseminated spermatozoa in the female genital tract of two species of Indian bats for the first time, andthe effective fertilization of the ovum released after a considerable lapse of time, a phenomenon usuallyonly with bats inhabiting temperate regions. Among the more than 100 species of Indian bats comprisingnine families, details of sex cycle, embryology and some aspects of endocrinology have been so farstudied in several species representing all the nine families by Prof. Gopalakrishna and his students.

Prof. Gopalakrishna was an outstanding sportsman, and represented his state in football. He was also anaccomplished musician and virtuoso in Sitar. He was also interested in astrology. He continued researchafter his retirement and in his later years he was engaged in Vedantic studies and took to reading AadiSankaracharya‘s works. He is survived by wife, children and grandchildren.

Prof. Gopalakrishna was a gifted scholar, an artist and humanitorian. He will always be remembered bythe scientific as well as teaching community.

P. Kunwar Bhatnagar, Arakkal Madhavan and K.B.KarimAddress for correspondence:

Arakkal Madhavan, Kailath Tharavadu, Paralam-680575, Thrissur, Kerala, India.

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Originally appeared on http://www.moa.gov.bt/moa/news/news_detail.php?id=836

A total of 30 participants attended the training at CNRLobesa from 7-11 September 2009. The participants werefrom ten national parks, territorial forest divisions,institutes and nature conservation divisions. Allparticipants were awarded certificates at the end of thetraining.

Resource persons for this training were1. Dr. Paul A. Racey, Chair, IUCN SSC Chiroptera SpecialistGroup based in UK.2. Dr. Mike Jordan, Chair (Europe & North Asia) IUCN SSCReintroduction Specialist Group based in UK.3. Dr. B.A. Daniel, Scientist and Educator, Zoo OutreachOrganization, India.4. Mr. R. Marimuthu, Education Officer, Zoo OutreachOrganization, India.

The main objectives of the training were to train theforestry staff working in national parks, divisions andinstitutions in the following areas:

Training in field techniques on small mammals, BhutanSonam Choden*

*National Conservation Division, Department of Forest,Government of Bhutan, Bhutan

• To impart practical field techniques for ecological studies

• To reinforce and improve handling, field and lab techniquesfor scientific studies

• To teach captive management and welfare of bats androdents as well as educational techniques for public education

• To discuss future directions and activities of the networkin collaboration with the specialist groups.

Background information on small mammals of BhutanBhutan has close to 200 species of mammals, which isremarkable considering the small size of the countrycompared to other neighbouring countries like India. Smallmammals consisting of bats and rodents form the mostdiverse order of mammals. There are 65 species of batsrecorded in Bhutan which constitute 33% of all mammal taxaof Bhutan. Out of 65 species of bats, nine species aremegachiroptera or fruit bats also known as flying foxes, and56 species are microchiroptera belonging to five families.The most common group of bats in Bhutan is the evening bats(Vespertilionidae) with 34 species found in Bhutan. Bats are

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distributed mostly in subtropical andtemperate areas between 500-3000maltitude above sea level (Wangchuk etal. 2004).

There is lack of ecological informationon many mammal species including smallmammals in Bhutan. Their population,status, distribution and threats arelargely unknown. This intensive five-daytraining program on small mammalsfacilitated by experts from IUCN andZOO would help equip forestry staffwith the required knowledge, skills andtechniques to initiate surveys todocument small mammals in Bhutan. Thismight even lead to discovery of newspecies records for Bhutan.

Small mammals training information:The training on small mammals in Bhutanis being organized by the ChiropteraConservation and Information Networkof South Asia (CCINSA) representingthe IUCN SSC Chiroptera SpecialistGroup in South Asia; RodentiaInsectivora, and ScandentiaConservation & Information Network ofSouth Asia (RISCINSA) representingthe Rodent, and Insectivore SpecialistGroups in South Asia; ConservationBreeding Specialist Group, South Asia;Reintroduction Specialist Group, S & EAsia; Zoo Outreach Organization(ZOO); and Wildlife InformationLiaison Development Society (WILD) incollaboration with Nature ConservationDivision, Department of Forest, Bhutan.This is the first such training on smallmammals to be organized in Bhutan. Itis the first time Zoo OutreachOrganisation has organised training inBhutan. The training was for the

duration of five days from 7-11September and focused on ecologicalfield techniques and speciesidentification.

Participants and host comments postworkshop via emailThanks for your mail and appreciationthat u pose on us. I get back to youwith proposal on small rodents verysoon. pls help me in every aspect.Kuenzang Dorji, Lecturer, UgyenWangchuk Institute for Conservationand Environment, Bumthang, Bhutan.

I enjoyed the training. Please do bringsuch training for Bhutan again. JigmeTshelthrim Wangyal, Head ofResearch, Bumdeling WildlifeSanctuary, Trashiyangtse, Bhutan.

It was a great pleasure meetingconservationist like you all and withoutyour workshop Bhutan might have hadremained ignorant of the subtilities ofthe small mammals although we havediverse species. As saying goes ourcommitments are your efforts for theconservation which will made adifference in this world. Whatever maybe we will try our best and explore thesaid mammals and accordingly report toyour organization without fail. Wereach safely to our destination and hopesame for you. I will never forget theday and night for hunting for bats. Iwould like to convey my heartiestmessages to Dr. Paul and Mike and ZooOutreach for arranging wonderful fieldteachniques for rodents and bats.Hoping for more workshops and trainingin future too. Tenzin, Species

Management and Research Section,Wangchuck Centennial Park, Bumthang,Bhutan*I am just preparing my work plan &project proposals to carry out rodent’ssurvey in my division, which includesthree districts. Hope everything willbe fine. Thank you for imparting suchtraining to us; we will keep in touch.Tashi Dendup, Senior Forest Ranger,Wangdue Forest Division, Lobesa,Bhutan*It was a great pleasure for me toreceive your mail. This is the positivesign that you are showing for to worktowards the conservation of smallmammals in Bhutan. We will work ourcommitments by seeking your advice andcomments wherever necessary.Jangchuk Gyeltshen, Section Head,Research and Species ConservationSection, Jigme Dorji National Park,Damji, Gasa, Bhutan*Thanks for your support and forbringing the Small Mammal Training toBhutan. Our participants found thetraining highly useful and I am suresome of them will take up studies onsmall mammals of Bhutan. We arecommitted to working together withyour network of organisations and lookforward to your visit in the future.Sonam Choden, Sr. Forest Officer,Nature Conservation Division,Department of Forest, Ministry ofAgriculture, Thimphu, Bhutan*The workshop conducted by your groupwas very useful for a small country likeBhutan where we don’t have record on

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small mammals. I had little knowledgeabout small mammal and how to conductsurvey and identify the species. Now, Iam preparing for a presentation on ourworkshop to my field staff. Once more,thanks for your great services and if Ihad any problems on this subject I willcontact you. Nhawang Tenzin, ParkRanger, Jigme Singye WangchukNational Park, Athang Park RangeOffice, Wangdue, Bhutan*I am going to present what we did inthe workshop to my collegues atThrumshingla National Park and I willlet you know what i am going to do afterthat. I hope to conduct identificationand survey. Sangay Drukpa, ParkRanger, Thrumshingla National Park,Ura, Bumthang.

ParticipantsMr. Tashi Dendup, Forest Ranger,Wangdue Forest DivisionMr. Sonam Wangchuk, Sr. RangeOfficer, Tsirang Forest DivisionMr. Sangay Drukpa, Forest Ranger,Thrumshingla National ParkMr. Tenzin, Assistant Forest Officer,Wangchuck Centennial ParkMr. Kinga Norbu, Range Officer,Bumthang Forest Division

Trainees practising Mist-netting and rodent trapping

Mr. Tshering Dorji, Assistant ForestOfficer, Paro Forest DivisionMr. Sangay Dorji, Sr. Range Officer,Royal Manas National ParkMr. Yeshi Wangdi, Sr. Range Officer,Royal Manas National ParkMr. Kuenzang Dorji, Sr. Forest Ranger,Ugyen Wangchuck, Institute forConservation and Environment,BumthangDr. Dhan Bdr. Gurung, Sr. Lecturer,College of Natural Resources, LobesaMr. Jangchuk Gyeltshen, Sr. RangeOfficer, Jigme Dorji National ParkMr. Kesang Dorjee, Forest Officer,Sakteng Wildlife SanctuaryMr. Tshering Dawa, Forest Ranger,Bumdeling Wildlife SanctuaryMr. Jigme T. Wangyel, Assistant ForestOfficer Bumdeling Wildlife Sanctuary

Mr. Ngawang Tenzin, Forest Ranger,Jigme Singye Wangchuck National ParkMr. Jamyang Tenzin, Sr. Ranger,Thimphu Forest DivisionMr. Sonam Penjor, Assistant ForestOfficer, Royal Botanical andRecreational Parks divisionMr. Sherub Wabgchuk, Assistant ForestOfficer, Royal Botanical andRecreational Parks divisionMr. Sonam Wangchuck, Dy. Chief ForestOfficer, Nature Conservation Division

Mr. Sonam Wangdi,Forest Officer,Nature Conservation DivisionMr. Norbu Wangdi, Forest Officer,Nature Conservation DivisionMr. Lhendup Tharchen, Forest OfficerNature Conservation DivisionMr. Kuenzang Gyeltsen, LivestockOfficer, Nature Conservation DivisionMr. Sangay, Assistant Forest Officer,Nature Conservation Division.

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ObjectivesMain objectives of this five-daytraining are; (i) to convey practical

field techniques for use forecological studies, (ii) to reinforceand improve handling, field and

lab techniques for scientificstudies, (iii) to teach captivemanagement and welfare of bats

and rodents as well aseducational techniques forreaching the public, and (iv) To

discuss future directions andactivities of the network incollaboration with the specialist

groups.

Workshop detailsThe training was inaugurated by

Dr. Sonam Wangyel Wang, ChiefForestry Officer, NatureConservation Division in the

presence of the chief guest wasMr. Dorji Wangchuk, Director,College of Natural Resources. A

total of 22 participants attendedthe training from 10 NationalParks, Territorial Forest Divisions,

Education Institutions and NatureConservation Division. Thesyllabus of the five-day training,

included the following:introduction to bats, rodents andinsectivores; introduction to field

techniques for bats and rodents;standard techniques in inventoryand monitoring-temperate, sub-

tropical, desert field techniques;identification of habitat andsampling methodologies of bats

and rodents; catching animals -Sherman traps, pit-fall traps, treetraps, etc.; field practice traps

and techniques for bats - groundmist nets, harp traps, sub-canopynets, flick hooks, c) getting bitten,

d) first aid kits; care of nets andtraps; animal handling (i)Identifying animals in the field (ii)

identification, use of keys, takingskin samples for DNA analysis; (iii)reproductive status; (iv) age; (v)

recording data; and feces (bats);Ethics of bat trapping and fieldstudies, and marking techniques -

cyalume lights, reflective tape onwings, radio-tracking, identifyingbats from echolocation calls;

identification of fauna; Referencecollections around the world –use of, how to access

electronically; building referencecollec-tions; lab practical inpreservation; tissue collection

and preservation for bio-analysisusing museum specimens;recording morphological and

osteological measurements; keytaxonomic characters of Rodentsand Chiroptera: survey protocol;

Conservation Planning - Planningand designing combined Volant/Non-volant mammals filed study

and Conservation Action

Training in Field Techniques for Research and Conservation of Volant andNon-volant Small Mammals, BhutanR. Marimuthu*

Programme for Threatened SmallMammals Ecological surveys –dietary studies: role of rodents

and bats as pollinators and seeddispersers; Rodents andInsectivores / Bat Conservation;

Conservation through interactivemanagement – Captive Breedingand exhibition in Zoos/ Ex situ

conservation and reintroductionprogrammes for both bats androdents handled by Paul A. Racey

and Mike Jordan.

Apart from this special talk wasdelivered by Sonam Choden whospoke about the Nature

Conservation Division and theongoing projects. Mr. JigmeTshelthrim Wangyal gave a

presentation on herpetofauna ofBhutan from his research work inBumdeling Wildlife Sanctuary

followed to this. At the end apanel discussion was held. PaulRacey, Mike Jordan and Daniel

answered participants’ questions.Participants asked about therequired equipment for survey,

how to network the surveythroughout Bhutan, what arehealth hazards handling the

animals and its prevention,

Dr. Sonam Wangyel Wang, Chief Forestry Officer,Nature Conservation Division delivering his

inagural address

Dr. Paul Racey explaining methods to capture batsusing Harpnet

*Education Officer, ZOO,Coimbatore, [email protected]

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funding agencies, equipmentsuppliers or manufactureraddresses, the places to take-up

research in Bhutan. Theparticipants were invited tobecome a member of CCINSA and

RISCINSA. Participants concludedthat there should be depositoryfor equipment in one place rather

than at different places; the NCD

already has some equipments.Sonam Choden said that thetraining was very useful and they

will definitely take a leadsurveying the population batsand rodents in Bhutan soon. On

behalf of Sally Walker, the Chair ofCCINSA and RISCINSA, Danielthanked the sponsors for

providing funding to conduct this

five day event. The programmewas closed with the issue ofcertificates. A few days following

the workshop, a proposal forsurveying the small mammals ofthe entire country was prepared,

a sign of success of theworkshop.

Trainees learning and practising hands-on techniques

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A five-day hands-on trainingworkshop on echolocation and battaxonomy, workshop was organisedby CCINSA/ZOO and WILD incollaboration with the School ofBiological Sciences, Madurai-Kamaraj University, Madurai, TamilNadu from 10-14th August 2009.Sripathi, our CCINSA Chair hadrequested the advanced taxonomytraining for his graduate students atMKU, and our regular trainer forbat field techniques, Paul Racey hadrecently introduced us to his Ph.D.student, Neil Furey, also fromAberdeen University, UK,specialising in bat taxonomy. It wasa perfect match. Neil came overright after handing in his Ph.D.

In addition, Srinivasulu of OsmaniaUniversity demonstrated sometaxonomic and identificationaspects. The entire training wasattended by 18 participants. Thetraining programme was sponsoredby Chester Zoo and Bat ConservationInternational.

The training started with apresentation by Neil on basictaxonomic aspects of bats. He alsotalked about bat fauna of Indiahighlighting more on taxonomicaspects. The basic anatomy of batsand measurements were coveredusing illustrations. As part of it heintroduced various keys used in batidentification particularly charactermatrices and explained thedifferences between widely usedcharacter matrices and dichotomouskey. The dichotomous key developedby Srinivasulu was used to identifythe preserved specimens brought bythe participants from differentparts of southern India. In thisexercise participants were dividedinto five groups and each group wasgiven two specimens foridentification using the dichotomouskeys. The groups were asked topresent the steps involved inidentification using the key. They

Bat Taxonomy and Echolocation Workshop for Researchers at M.K.U.B.A. Daniel*

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felt that the key was handy foridentification.

Day 2 of the programme started withspecies identification methods usingcranial and dental analysis. Tobegin with, skull extraction wasdemonstrated. Identification ofbats using cranial and dentalanalysis was explained. Theparticipants in groups practicedskull extraction of bats. This gavean opportunity for each participantto practice cranial and dentalanalysis individually by takingmeasurements and observation. Aspart of the species identification,preparations for bacula analysis wascarried out.

To introduce bat identificationusing acoustic analysis thefunctional basis of echolocation wasdiscussed. Neil gave a presentationon acoustic patterns in Indian batfamilies and genera. He alsoreviewed types of bat detectors andthe methods involved in bat soundanalysis. Varieties of bat detectorsused by bat researchers weredisplayed and the advantages anddisadvantages of the tools wereexplained along with the methods touse the tools. In the afternoon ofthe third day the participants

practiced bat skulling techniquesand practiced species identificationusing cranial and dental analysis.Bacula analysis was demonstrated.In the evening preparations forzipline recording was made andfield assistants were employed tocollect a few bat species from thewild.

Day 4 started with an early sessionbefore sunrise where participantsgathered to watch the demonstration

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of zipline bat sound recording. Two bats collectedfrom the field early in the morning were used for thedemonstration. The methodology involved in ziplines,hand release and light tagging using cyalume lightcapsules. The participants recorded the sound andanalysed in the laboratory. During the day Neil gave adetailed description of a variety of field recordingmethods.

During the course flight tents were erected and the batswere released and the calls recorded. These recordedbat sounds were used for analysis. Dr. SripathiKandula, Scientific Chair of CCINSA and host of thisworkshop gave a talk to share his experience in batresearch with particular reference to echolocation andtaxonomy.

Day 5 started with discussions on aspects of acousticidentification and multivariate analysis. The strengthsand weaknesses of acoustic sampling were discussed indetail. Neil also gave a presentation to introduce batcall libraries.

At the end Sanjay Molur, highlighted the activities ofCCINSA and invited all the participants to become amember. He also thanked Chester Zoo and BatConservation International for providing fundingsupport for the training. All the participants received acourse certificate and a bound volume of lecturematerials.

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The Bat Taxonomy and Echolocation workshop, held atMadurai Kamaraj University during 10th - 14th Aug 2009,was a good exposure to the supposedly untouched andrelatively non-popular branch of biology. The organization,program schedule and mainly the content of the workshopwere satisfactory.

Taxonomy and systematics of the largest order Chiropterawere efficiently dealt with in the workshop, whileproviding hands-on experience. Identification of batspecies using character matrices and identification keyswas the most useful part of the whole program. Systematiclayout and practical experience with morphological, dentaland cranial analyses of bats proved to be very effectivein identification of species. Introduction to batecholocation calls, their role in taxonomy and importancein identifying cryptic species were really helpful inexploring new avenues for research in the field ofchiropteran biology.

Though it was a well organized workshop, previousarrangements with adequate number of specimens forpractical sessions of, for example, echolocation callrecording would have been helpful. Group discussionsessions could be conducted wherein participants wouldhave been more interactive and informative. Voluntary talksby researchers attending the workshop with respect totheir research experiences could be included. More ofinformal discussions in the evenings with researchers,regarding the scope of and problems in such research wouldbe encouraging.

Overall, it was a very productive workshop in acquiringsystematic knowledge in Bat taxonomy and getting familiarwith its applications in conservation and management.--Kadambari V. Deshpande

My main objective to come to this workshop was to learnthe key identifying variables for species identification.I have previously no formal training in taxonomy butwith the help of this workshop I have learnt at least thebasic classification of bats. The parts of the workshopdedicated to using external morphology foridentification was good. Hands on training were animportant goal of the workshop which was achieved. Neilmade the discussions lively. The only issue was the keythat was checked during the workshop. I did notpersonally find it an easy way to identify bats.--Kritika M. Garg

It was the opening and introductory session of theworkshop. Each participant introduced their backgroundand interests. The next session was an introductoryclass on bat systematics, taxonomy and conservationwhich also discussed the identification characters of

various species of bats. After that we had a theory classon the taxonomic overview of the bat fauna of Indiawhich also discussed the various bat families of Indiansubcontinent. Both the classes were handled by Dr. NeilFurey.

Afternoon we had two lecture classes and a practicalsession. The first lecture was on specimen collection,preparation and measurement and the second was oncharacter matrices and dichotomous keys for batidentification. Both the lectures were a preamble to thenext practical session. In the practical session we weresplit into groups and identified various bat speciesbased on external morphology. All the groups were alsoprovided with a dichotomous key and the groupspresented their findings. The specimens that our teamworked were Rhinolophus beddomei and Rhinopomahardwickii.

The second day started with a lecture class on batskulls, including the procedures and methods for theskull preparation and curation. The skull extractionprocess was demonstrated by Dr. Neil Furey. This wasfollowed by the skull extraction by each of the team.The next session was a lecture on bat bacula analysisand preparation. The lecture was then followed by thedemonstration on the preparation of the bacula by Dr.Neil Furey. We could not do the practical on the baculaextraction due to the non-availability of male specimens.

The third day started with the practical session on themorphology and measurement on bat skulls and dentition.Cranio-dental analysis is very crucial in theidentification of the bats. We could do the practical oncranio-dental analysis for species identification. Eachof the group was made to present their findings alongwith the bat skull that their team has extracted.The next session was the lecture on bat echolocation.Neil Furey taught us the functional basis and taxonomicpatterns of bat echolocation. He also explained to usabout the bat detectors, and its functioning.

The fourth day started with a practical session onrecording the bat calls. The session was early in themorning and we also did practical on flight tents, ziplines and light-tagging using captured bat species.This was followed by lectures on bat specimencollections, curation / management, measurement ofecholocation calls, acoustic identification, call scalingand variation.

We also had a session on taxonomy and echolocationwith case studies from SE Asia. We also had somepractical on bat bacula analysis using bacula preparedby Dr. Neil.

Participant feedback:

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The final day started with a lecture on multivariateanalysis of acoustic identification. The strength,weaknesses and considerations of acoustic samplingwere also dealt with. The next lecture was on thedevelopment and management of echolocation calllibraries.

We were also informed on the further information onbat research such as, web resources and literature onbats. In the afternoon we repeated our practical on batidentification, skull extraction and cranio-dentalanalysis. After that we had the concluding session ofthe workshop and also had a photo session.

The workshop was a very interesting and great learningexperience. It was the first kind that we wereattending. It discussed many practical aspects of batsand their conservation. The class on echolocation was aunique experience. It was also a great experience tohave classes of Dr. Neil Furey and Dr. C. Srinivasulu.The workshop also provided many topics for discussionand also the latest concerns in bat conservation whichwill help us in the future. -- Malik Fasil, M. &Leonald, G. Melite, KAU, Kerala

The 5-day workshop on ‘Bat taxonomy and echolocation’was a new and learning experience for the students whohave started working on bats very recently. It covered,very efficiently, the taxonomic aspects of bat studies.Species identification is kind of a pre-requisite for thestudy of a particular organism, which sadly enough, noregular coursework includes. So, the platforms like thisworkshop turn out to be really helpful as far as very basicaspects like taxonomy or even, morphology are concerned.

Although, I expected this workshop to be more interactivethan it was, the lectures were really informative. However,group discussions or talks about different kinds ofpossibilities in bat biology or status of the work that isbeing done in/outside the country would have been reallyhelpful and driving. Since the workshop was on taxonomy,not much field work was expected, but it would have beena great experience to get to handle bats individually.

‘Learning by practicing’ was very well followed in theworkshop through the skull dissections, use of keys andmatrices for species identification etc. Field work forecholocation using line trapping, flight cages and use ofdifferent detectors was again a great use of resources tolearn and know more. Also, to know about how the samplesin different institutes and/or museums are preserved wasfascinating. Same applies to all the ‘physics’ involved inecholocation. These are the aspects one can hardly findany literature on, but are very important for a zoologist.

Such workshops should last at least for a fortnight sothat more of fieldwork can be included, which is a

necessary element of bat studies. All in all, the workshopwas very well organized including the seating arrangement,meals, lectures and discussions. We look forward toattending more of such workshops and training programsin the near future. -- Megha Budhwani

The workshop held on “Bat taxonomy and echolocation”was a great opportunity for students planning to work, oralready working in the field of bats. It gave us the insightsof the various studies being carried out on bats along witha lot of information regarding its identification,classification and echolocation studies.

Being new to this field myself, I registered for theworkshop keeping in mind the future work that I have todo on bats (handling) and echolocation. So I was definitelyawaiting this workshop with the idea in mind that I wouldknow more about the wide variety of bats present in nature,their classification and identification strategies.

All of these notions of mine were definitely catered toduring the course of the workshop. The hands onexperience in handling of bats, their identification andcapture of echolocation signals etc. were well coordinatedand organized. The experts from each of these fields werepresent and would contribute their thoughts andsuggestions during each and every discussion. This reallyhelped me in getting introduced to this field andunderstanding exactly what are the various aspects understudy in bats.

The other things include interactions with all the expertsin the field of taxonomy, echolocation and other students/ scholars presently working in the area. It is extremelyoverwhelming to know the current work being carried outon bats and to share the experiences of other peoplecurrently working in this field. The experiments weremostly given for each of us to perform and were not meredemonstrations. This kept the interest levels highthroughout. Also the instruments and softwares used inthis field were introduced and their handling and use wasencouraged.Over all it was a wonderful experience. The organizationand interest and time put in by the organizers were reallyappreciable. -- Pooja Muralidharan

Expectation from the workshop was that it will proveuseful for both basic and advanced level researchersworking on various aspects of taxonomy and acoustics.

Satisfaction level after attending the workshop: I didfeel unsatisfied.Only the acoustics part was dealt with some necessarydetail.

Taxonomy part was dealt in a very unprofessionalmanner. Our Indian resource persons were never

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convincing in their clarifications. Too much stress wasgiven on their personal viewpoints. Materials supplied asidentification matrices and dichotomous keys lackednecessary details and were replete with flaws. Theentire exercise looked like an advertisement of a bookthat is yet to be printed. As workshop participants weshould be taught with the help of established and wellaccepted matrices.

There was not much mention of ways of non lethal fieldidentification techniques; some thing that is veryessential in a country like India where rules and lawsmakes it a near impossible task for us to collectspecimens from protected areas. Personally, resourcepersons were quite approachable and friendly.-- Balaji Chattopadhyay

The workshop was well organized and planned. Basicaspects on classical zoology particularly on taxonomicidentification based on skull, dentition, baculum andecholocation was taught well.

Resource person Neil’s presentation and explanations onwet specimen preparation, reproductive statusassessment, echolocation was nice and it still live inmind, particularly recording calls by zipline was verynew to me. Also Dr. Sripathi talk on echolocation callswas very informative. Dr. Srinivasulu involvement inpractical session with each group had helped a lot whiledissection of the specimen.

Session on bat identification using dichotomous andcharacter matrix key to identify a particular bat attheir species level was interesting and the bookprovided was really useful for identification at specieslevel. At the same time, the book also lacks some minutedetails (key) to differentiate at species level for somespecies. Overall the workshop was very informative andeducative. -- A.K.Vinoth Kumar

Participant emails

Neil Furey, Vietnam [email protected] Kandula, MKU, Madurai [email protected]. Srinivasulu, Osmania University, Hyderabad [email protected] Molur, ZOO, Coimbatore [email protected]. Daniel, ZOO, Coimbatore [email protected], ZSI, Pune [email protected] Reginald Louis, Coimbatore [email protected] Chattopadhyay, MKU, Madurai [email protected]. Vinoth Kumar, MKU, Madurai [email protected] Chatterjee, MKU, Madurai [email protected] M. Garg, NCBS, Bengaluru [email protected] Muralidharan, MKU, Madurai [email protected]. Kaliraj, MKU, Madurai [email protected]. Maruthupandian, MKU, Madurai [email protected]. Selvarathinam, MKU, Madurai [email protected]. Senthilkumar, MKU, Madurai [email protected]. Baskaran, MKU, Madurai [email protected] V. Deshpande, MKU, Madurai [email protected] Budhwani, MKU, Madurai [email protected] Fasil M, KAU, Mannuthy [email protected] G Melite, KAU, Mannuthy [email protected]

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Report on Bat Kit program during summer camp at

MCBTDuring the summer vacations, two day camps were held for 25children between the ages of 10 and 14 at the MadrasCrocodile Bank. During the camp the children were given aguided tour of the Croc Bank and got an opportunity to takepictures with our young reptiles. Besides the tour and somefun filled and informative animal activities they went on anight safari in Croc bank and took a trip to Nemelli, a villagesituated close to the Croc Bank, which has a large banyantree and is a known roosting place for fruit bats. The nextmorning, they went for a snake trek in the nearby village.They also spent some time with the puppet theatre wherethey made their own script.

The trip to the bat colony was aimed at getting childrenfamiliar with the denizens of the night! They saw a largenumber of roosting fruit bats. The kids saw many seedsdispersed by the bats near this roosting tree and thuslearned first-hand about the importance of these bats in seeddispersal and pollination.

Most of them had never seen such a large colony of bats. TheEducation Officer gave them all the information about these‘flying foxes’.

The kids tried hanging from the banyan tree to get a feel ofwhat it would be like to hang from a tree like the bats.

All the children were given the Bat Education Kits and theyquickly wore the mask. They tied the rakhi to each other andpromised to protect the bats. They were given informationabout different types of bats, the threats to bats and theirimportance. They were also given the Fruit Bats of SouthAsia pocket cards.

There was a question and answer round to clarify all themyths they had about bats. All in all it was some time spentgoing batty about bats!!!

A programme on BatsOn 13 November, I visited the Arivu facility where I hadconducted a programme earlier this year on amphibians. Thestudents still remembered that programme, particularly thecolouring books which were a popular activity item. Iintroduced bats by asking the students to name birds thatflew; they gave a big list including crows, mynas, egrets, etc.Next I asked them to name a mammal that flew, they wereconfused and uncertain. One said squirrel and another onesaid ‘bat’. The latter student told us how he had touched abat once, under the supervision of an adult, when the bat hadaccidentally entered his house and was trapped inside. He’dtouched the bat’s wing which was like a membrane.

The students learned then what a bat was and why it is calleda mammal even though it can fly. They also learned what batseat. I told them about some of the myths andmisunderstandings about bats and how very useful they are tohuman beings. Bats are not to be killed or considered aspests.

Public Education on Bats throughout India using materials funded by BCI

Akansha Mukherjee Education Officer, Madras Croc BankTrust [email protected]

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They learned the technical terms megachiroptera andmicrochiroptera, the difference between fruit bats andinsectivorous bats. We also discussed where bats are usuallyfound and how they find their way with their amazing hearing.With this back-ground I handed out the bat colouring bookwhich thrilled them to have another opportunity to colour.They were referred to the instructions given on every pageand did a good job colouring the bats.

I would like to thank students, teachers and the trustees ofArivu School, and all the people of Zoo OutreachOrganisation, Coimbatore as well as Bat ConservationInternational BCI for coming out with the interestingmaterials. Sub. by Tanuja, D.H [email protected],[email protected]

COUNTDOWN 2010 — Save Biodiversity in Chennai andMadurai SchoolsThis programme was an opportunity to students and staff ofRani Meyyammai GHSS to learn more about bats andbiodiversity, via material from ZOO. After relating some

historic activities of IUCN since 1972, COUNT DOWN2010 Save Biodiversity was explained. Students andteachers underwent training in bat conservation. Freeeducational packets from Zoo Outreach Organisation weredistributed. They were taught using techniques of role-play,race and students initiation. Being the first time of thistype of programme, the BAT Activities material wastranslated into Tamil and distributed to all. ‘Bat bookmark’and South Asian Bats colouring books were distributed.Students participated in drawing and cultural programmes.

Wildlife Week celebrations with BatsRani Meyyammai Girls Higher Secondary School, Chennai hasencouraged the students to take up a Bat Conservationprogramme. They have conducted drawing competitions onbats and converted illustrations provided by ZOO to becarried out for public awareness. The Eco Task Forcestudents created public awareness by distributing handmadepaper bags and small cups made from paper pulp. Each studenthas maintained a separate note book to record theiractivities. It was inspiring to look into the things they havemade to create awareness on environment and biodiversityconservation.

COUNTDOWN 2010 – Save BiodiversityBell school, Palayamkottai, Tamil Nadu: The 2-day programmeon Count Down 2010 – Save Biodiversity was conducted usingbats as a theme. Eighty students and 11 staff members of 5different schools participated. On 6 October a batconservation awareness activity was conducted. Studentshave seen bats in their campus. A few students described thehanging position and feeding habits as well as more pointsabout bats from the booklets distributed. They chanted‘Take Care of bats…they are our friends’. Wearing rakhi,mask and placard they flew like bats from place to place.They learned there are 2 types of bats, fruit eating andinsect eating bats. They identified the characteristics ofinsect bats and fruit bats. They drew bat pictures byconnecting the dots. The book mark was very useful to sharepithy facts about the bats. The next session was a drawingcompetition & role play. Students participated in thedrawing competitionon featuring bats. There were four role-play sections based on the materials sent by ZOO.Submitted by Ms. Jessie Jayakaran,[email protected].

Observation of 55th Wildlife Week by APOWAThird day celebration was the wildlife education programmefor students of Venkateswar School, Pattamundai. Mr.Manamohan Kudu, Education Officer, APOWA delivered aneducational presentation to the students on conservation ofbats. BATCOUNT (material provided by ZOO) contest wasorganised for students. Students were given an orientationabout the type of forests and its importance for differentfloral and faunal diversity. There were total of 62 studentsparticipated in the programme. Sub. by: B.K. Kabi, APOWA,Orissa. [email protected]

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Bat Biology and Conservation Workshop23rd February, 2010

Workshop Details

withwith

Bats are among the most speciose yet poorly-studiedgroups of mammals. Some 120 species are known fromthe Indian subcontinent. Occupying diverse niches in bothnatural and human-modified ecosystems, bats performimportant ecological functions as predators, pollinators,and seed dispersers, thereby providing valuable ecosys-tem services. Although there is a fund of research into thebiology of a few common species, India’s bat communitiesstill remain un-described and the ecological and anthropo-genic determinants of species distribution and abundanceare mostly unknown.

This one-day workshop, conducted by Prof. John Altringham and Dr Anita Glover, University of Leeds, UK, willprovide an overview of many aspects of the biology and conservation of bats, and introduce students to a variety offield and lab-based techniques to study bat ecology and behaviour including methods to identify bats from echolocationcalls, and the use of bat detectors in facilitating field studies.

The workshop will be conducted at the National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore.

Provisional programme:• An overview of bat diversity: life history strategies, feeding and roosting ecology, social and matingsystems, population biology• Bats in ecosystems: bats as predators, pollinators and seed dispersers• Bats and conservation: threats to bats, bats a biodiversity indicators• Techniques and protocols in research and conservation: catching and marking, echolocation callrecording and analysis, radio-telemetry, biodiversity assessment protocols, ecosystem services• Practical demonstrations: mist netting and identification, echolocation call recording and sound analysis

Application DetailsWe invite students working in the fields of ecology, evolution and conservation to apply for participation in thisworkshop. To apply, please email us at [email protected] with your CV, and a brief note on your researchinterests and how you think this workshop will be useful to you. We will begin reviewing applications on February1st, 2010.

Fifteen students will be selected for the workshop. Selection will be based on each applicant’s academic backgroundand plans. Food during the workshop will be covered by the workshop organizers. Travel costs (by second classtrain) will be covered for a limited number of participants. Please indicate in your application if you would like travelcosts to be covered.

Coordinated by: Mahesh Sankaran (National Centre for Biological Sciences), M.D. Madhusudan and Divya Mudappa (Nature Conservation Foundation, Mysore)

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SMALL MAMMAL NETWORKS

Chiroptera Conservation and InformationNetwork of South Asia (CCINSA)

CCINSA is a network of South Asian Chiropteraspecialists, educators and enthusiasts. Thenetwork aims to enhance communication,cooperation and collaboration amongchiroptera specialists of this region and therebycreate a chiroptera conservation “community”for better biodiversity conservation.

Chair: Sripathi KandulaConvenor and Administrator: Sally WalkerRed List and Technical Expert: Sanjay Molur

Rodentia, Insectivora, and ScandentiaConservation & Information Network ofSouth Asia

RISCINSA network of South Asia wassuggested by interested biodiversityconservation specialists and the purpose of thisnetwork, then is to link together rodent fieldresearchers and their field knowledgethroughout South Asia (Bangladesh, Bhutan,India, Nepal, Maldives, Pakistan, Sri Lanka andAfghanistan) so the pooling of information canlead to conservation action.

Scientific Chair: Sujit ChakrabortyConvenor and Administrator: Sally Walker BSG, SSC, IUCN

Small Mammal Mail

SMM is bi-annual Newsletter celebrating the most useful yet most neglectedMammals for both CCINSA & RISCINSA -- Chiroptera, Rodent, Insectivore, &Scandens Conservation and Information Networks of South Asia

Editor: Sally Walker; Technical Advisors: Sanjay Molur, B.A. Daniel, R. Marimuthu;and Publication Assistants: Latha Ravikumar, Ravichandran, Pravin Kumar

CCINSA and RISCINSA are an activity of Zoo Outreach Organisation (ZOO) andWildlife Information Liaison Development (WILD) in association with CBSG, SouthAsia and RSG, South Asia.

Note: ZOOS’ PRINT Magazine, Journal of Threatened Taxa, Newsletters and avariety of reports can be found on our websites: www.zooreach.org andwww.zoosprint.org.

Small Mammal Mail, C/o Zoo Outreach Organisation9A, Lal Bahadur Colony, Peelamedu, Coimbatore 641004 TN INDIAPhone: 91 422 2561087; Fax 2563269; Email: <[email protected]>Websites: www.zooreach.org, www.zoosprint.org; www.pterocount.org;www.southasiantaxa.org.

SMALL MAMMAL NETWORKInternational Partners

Chester Zoo Conservation Fund supports ZOO/

CCINSA office, BAT NET newsletter and trainingin field techniques for bats. Chester Funds havealso made it possible to conduct training for rodentbiologists as well. Chester Zoo, which has anoutstanding and very popular facility for exhibitionand breeding of bats, and an active conservationinterest in chiroptera is located in Upton-on-Chesterin United Kingdom and administered by North ofEngland Zoological Society. www.chesterzoo.org

Bat Conservation International BCI is one ofthe most active, innovative and respected batconservation organisations in the world. BCI hassupported CCINSA for many years and takes activeinterest in the growth of the Network and itsindividual batters. See BCI’s wonderful website:www.batcon.org

IUCN SSC Bat Specialist GroupCCINSA represents the IUCN SSC Bat SpecialistGroup in South Asia. BSG utilises the CCINSANetwork to locate specialists in different subjectareas, to organise training as well as conservationassessment workshops and other activities to assistthe CSG in their mission.Contact : Chair Paul Racey: [email protected]