DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.12760271
title: Do bats use guano and urine stains to find new roosts? Tests with three group-living bats

description: These data were collected for a study looking at whether three species of bats (Desmodus rotundus, Eptesicus fuscus, and Molossus molossus) use the scent from guano and urine to locate new roosts. The project included 8 different experiments (2 field experiments and 6 captive experiments). <br>The two field experiments were done in Ohio testingEptesicus fuscus and in Panama testing Molossus molossus. The experiment involved placing paired artificial roosts in the field where one was treated with guano and urine and the other served as a control. Each artificial roost was outfitted with a Wildlife Acoustics SM4+ bat device and microphone that recorded any bat calls near the entrance of the roost. We could determine approximately how close the bats were to the roost based on how loud the calls were. The txt files labeled 20190714_Call_Analysis_Compilation_Molossus and 20190921_Call_Analysis_Compilation_Molossus are measures of the .wav files collected from the microphones in Panama. These measures were generated through Avisoft. Details on the parameters used in Avisoft can be found in the methods of the manuscript. The R file labeled 20200501_Molossus_FlyBy_Analysisis the R script used to analyze the data in the aforementioned txt files. The txt file labeled are measures of the .wav files collected from the microphones in Ohio. These measures were generated through Avisoft. Specifications for the parameters used in Avisoft to automatically processthe .wav files can be found in the associated paper. The original files that include details about all of the .wav files recorded on the microphones can be found in the following .txt files (audubon.txt, blacklick.txt, highbanksone.txt, highbankstwo.txt, highbanksthree.txt, highbanksfour.txt, highbanksfive.txt, pickerington.txt,sciotogrove.txt, slaterun.txt, and walnutwoods.txt). Each of these files is all of the data collected from one of the seven sites in Ohio.The R script labeled 20200501_Eptesicus_analysis was also used to analyze the data in the txt files for the Ohio portion of the project. This R script also created a .csv file labeled epfu2. The epfu2.csv file is a portion of the txt file that only includes .wav files that were likely to include Eptesicus fuscus calls, as opposed to all bat calls recorded on the microphones. <br>The six captive experiments were done with both Desmodus rotundus (5 studies) and Molossus molossus (1 study). Experiment1data.csv was collected from a project looking at whether 5 Desmodus rotundus from captivity would chooseto roost in a tube with or without guano and urine. These data include information on which bat was being tested, how many tubes there were to choose from (either 4 tubes with 3 unscented control tubes and 1 scented tube or 2 tubes with 1 unscented control tube and 1 scented tube), and which roost tube the bat chose. The Experiment2data.csv includes data collected from a project looking to see if 20 Desmodusrotundus from a zoo would choose to hang on a surface in a small cage with guano more than on one without.These data include information on which bat was being tested and how many times it was found on both the control and the scented side. The Experiment3data.csv includes data collected from a project similar to Experiment 2, but it was done with wild-caught Desmodus rotundus and it was filmed. The Experiment4adata.xlsx and Experiment4bdata.xlsx files were from another study similar to Experiments 2 and 3, but this data set includes which side the bat was on at certain intervals, which bat was being used, whether it was part of a short (1 hour) or long (4 hour) trial, and which repetition of the trial that particular bat was on. The Experiment6data.xlsx file is from a study with the same set-up as Experiment 4, but this one was done with Molossus molossus instead of Desmodus rotundus. Finally, there are two files associated with Experiment 5. The experiment5data.csv file includes data on vampire bats placed into a y-maze with one of three options. First, they might be choosing between a scented arm of the maze or an unscented arm of the maze. These are labeled scent under trial type. Second, they might be choosing between an arm of the maze with playback callsbeing emitted from it or one without those calls. These are labeled sound under trial type. Finally, they might have been choosing between an arm with both cues or an armwithout either cue. These are labeled both under trial type. Each bat was placed in all three trial types, and so the order in which they experienced these trial types is also recorded. We measured the amount of time they spent in each arm (duration) and the amount of time it took them to choose that arm (latency). This can also be used to calculate speed, or how fast they moved into the arm of their choice. The ymaze_results.csv is a printout of a permutation done with experiment 5 data. <br>This work was approved by the University of Maryland Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (Protocol R-10-63), the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute Animal Care and Use Committee (#2015-0915-2018-A9, #2019-0501-2022), the Panamanian Ministry of the Environment (#SE/A-76-16, #SE/A-36-19), and the Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks through an access permit. <br>