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Terrestrial locomotor behaviors of the big brown bat (Vespertilionidae: Eptesicus fuscus)

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Abstract

Although living bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) demonstrate a wide variety of terrestrial behaviors and abilities, most research on terrestrial locomotor behaviors of bats has focused on those species known to be very terrestrially adept. Previous researchers have hypothesized that the terrestrial ability of bats is constrained by pelvic and hindlimb morphology, with gracile (type 1), intermediate (type 2), and robust (type 3) morphotypes corresponding to increasing levels of terrestrial competency. Here we present the first detailed report of the terrestrial locomotion and track morphology of the widespread North American vespertilionid Eptesicus fuscus. Although E. fuscus represents the intermediate pelvic and hindlimb morphotype (type 2), it is capable of performing a lateral sequence walk, common to quadrupedal vertebrates. The terrestrial locomotion behaviors of E. fuscus are similar to those reported for species of European vespertilionids, but it shows greater terrestrial ability than non-vespertilionid type 2 bats. Results further support a wider range of terrestrial ability in type 2 bats than has previously been understood.

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Data availability

All data are included herein. Trackway casts are accessioned into the vertebrate paleontology collection at the University of Kansas Natural History Museum and Biodiversity Institute (KUVP).

Code availability

Not applicable.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Diane Johnson and Operation WildLife (Linwood, Kansas) for access to one of the bat specimens. Jordan Crawford and Dan Dutcher assisted with handling, photography, and experimental setup. Dr. Robert M. Timm (University of Kansas) provided helpful discussion and helped capture bat specimens. Megan Sims and Maria Eifler (University of Kansas) assisted with Fig. 1. We thank three anonymous reviewers for their comments and suggestions, which have greatly improved the manuscript.

Funding

This research was supported by Sigma Xi (Grant no. 20111015158354), the Paleontological Society (Ellis L. Yochelson Award), and the University of Kansas Department of Geology (Selig and Frederick T. Holden scholarships) to M.F.J.

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Author notes

  1. Matthew F. Jones

    Present address: School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85281, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 66045, USA

    Matthew F. Jones

  2. Biodiversity Institute, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 66045, USA

    Matthew F. Jones

  3. Department of Geology, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 66045, USA

    Stephen T. Hasiotis

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Contributions

Conceptualization: M.F.J., S.T.H.; methodology: M.F.J., S.T.H.; formal analysis: M.F.J., S.T.H.; investigation: M.F.J.; writing—original draft: M.F.J.; writing—review and editing: M.F.J., S.T.H.; funding acquisition: M.F.J.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Matthew F. Jones.

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This research was approved by the University of Kansas Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee under animal use statement AUS 140–04.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Communicated by: Zuzanna Hałat

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Jones, M.F., Hasiotis, S.T. Terrestrial locomotor behaviors of the big brown bat (Vespertilionidae: Eptesicus fuscus). Mamm Res 68, 253–262 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13364-022-00669-9

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