title: Consumption of leaves by Platyrrhinus lineatus (Chiroptera, Stenodermatinae): are these bats primarily frugivorous or broadly phytophagous?
abstract: Until now, the consumption of leaves by bats has been considered rare or sporadic, even among the herbivorous families Pteropodidae and Phyllostomidae. Among the phyllostomids there are reports of folivory in the genera Artibeus and Platyrrhinus, based on opportunistic observations. Here, we conducted behavioural sampling using camera-trapping in the roost of a colony of Platyrrhinus lineatus already known to consume leaves during the dry and wet seasons, in order to investigate the frequency of leaf consumption, as well as eventual seasonal differences. We observed feeding activity in 80.5% of sampling nights, where fruit was present in 90.3% and leaves at 80.6%, with no significant differences between the consumption of items. When analyzing video recordings, we observed feeding activity in 22.2% of the samples, in which the consumption of fruits was significantly more frequent than the consumption of leaves. We also observed seasonal variation, with the consumption of leaves being significantly higher than that of fruits during the dry season, whereas in the rainy season, fruits were consumed significantly more frequently. Fruits and leaves were consumed in equal proportions during the night, with no differences between the early and late night. Our findings show that the consumption of leaves by herbivorous bats may be more widespread than previously thought. Leaves may often be a regular food item rather than a fallback.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon, São Cristóvão, Sergipe 49100-000, Brazil. Electronic address: parocha2@yahoo.com.br.
authors.forename: Patrício A da
authors.initials: PAD
authors.lastname: Rocha
authors.affiliation: Graduate Program in Ecology and Conservation, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon, São Cristóvão, Sergipe 49100-000, Brazil.
authors.forename: Arivania S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Pereira
authors.affiliation: Graduate Program in Ecology and Conservation, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon, São Cristóvão, Sergipe 49100-000, Brazil.
authors.forename: Saulo M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Silvestre
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon, São Cristóvão, Sergipe 49100-000, Brazil.
authors.forename: José Paulo
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Santana
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon, São Cristóvão, Sergipe 49100-000, Brazil.
authors.forename: Raone
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Beltão-Mendes
authors.affiliation: Biosciences Institute, Universidade Federal de Goiás, BR-364, Jataí, Goiás 75801-615, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marlon
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zortéa
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon, São Cristóvão, Sergipe 49100-000, Brazil; Graduate Program in Ecology and Conservation, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon, São Cristóvão, Sergipe 49100-000, Brazil; Department of Life Sciences, University of Roehampton, Roehampton Ln, London SW155PU, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Stephen F
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Ferrari
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002685:Chiroptera / Q000502:physiology*; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D005638:Fruit; D018515:Plant Leaves
keywords: Bat diet; Folivory; Herbiverous bats; Phyllostomidae