Bats limit insects in a neotropical agroforestry system.
Exclosure experiments have demonstrated the effects of bird predation on arthropods. In a Mexican coffee plantation, we excluded foliage-gleaning bird and bat predators from coffee plants. Effects of bats and birds were additive. In the dry season, birds reduced arthropods in coffee plants by 30%; birds and bats together reduced arthropods by 46%. In the wet season, bats reduced arthropods by 84%, whereas birds reduced them by only 58%. We conclude that previous "bird" exclosure experiments may have systematically underestimated the effects of bats.
Williams-Guillén
Kimberly
K
School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA. kimwg@umich.edu
Perfecto
Ivette
I
Vandermeer
John
J
D000818:Animals; D001181:Arthropods; D001717:Birds; D002685:Chiroptera / Q000502:physiology; D002980:Climate; D040503:Coffea; D017753:Ecosystem; D007313:Insecta; D008800:Mexico; D011157:Population Dynamics; D011235:Predatory Behavior; D012098:Reproduction; D012621:Seasons