Roosting ecology of Stenodermatinae bats (Phyllostomidae): evolution of foliage roosting and correlated phenotypes

摘要

Roosting ecology has probably shaped several aspects of bat evolution. Although Phyllostomidae species are known to use more types of roosts than any other chiropteran lineage, foliage roosting is almost entirely restricted to the frugivorous members of the subfamily Stenodermatinae. There are relatively few studies on the roosting ecology of stenodermatines other than leaf tent users, and there have been few attempts to reconstruct the evolution of the peculiar foliage-roosting habits of these fruit bats. Our aim was to reconstruct the evolution of foliage roosting in the Phyllostomidae phylogeny, and to test correlation hypotheses between roost types, pelage markings, and body size. We performed ancestral character reconstructions using stochastic mappings on a molecular phylogeny of Phyllostomidae and reviewed literature records on roosts used by Stenodermatinae. Correlations between roosting habits and pelage patterns were calculated using phylogenetic logistic regressions. Over 1200 records of roost use for 48 Stenodermatinae bat species were found in the literature. Most of the observations consisted of foliage roosting records; the second most common type of roost were caves and crevices, which was followed by holes in standing trees. Our results support a single origin of foliage roosting in Phyllostomidae, which we interpreted as a synapomorphy uniting Rhinophyllinae with the Stenodermatinae. We estimated a minimum of two origins of tent roosting within Phyllostomidae, and our reconstruction suggests that it was basal in the Rhinophyllinae+Stenodermatinae clade. Pelage markings of stenodermatines explained the type of roost, indicating that having white stripes or white spots contrasting with background pelage is related to foliage roosting. Species that use leaf tents are smaller than ones that do not, but group size does not appear to be correlated with tent use. Further studies of foliage-roosting bat species that do not use leaf tents may shed light on the mode of evolution of this complex behavioural character.