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Bat diversity in Vietnamese limestone karst areas and the implications of forest degradation

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Abstract

Limestone karst ecosystems in Southeast Asia and Vietnam are important reservoirs for biodiversity and are currently experiencing habitat loss and degradation due to land use changes and increasing pressure from extractive and tourism industries. Recent reviews indicate that their biodiversity is poorly known and raise doubts about the extent to which karst can maintain its biodiversity in the face of ongoing degradation. We investigated this issue by examining the effects of forest degradation on bat species diversity, composition and abundance. Using mist nets and harp traps, we sampled bat assemblages in karst forests of differing integrity for a total of 240 net nights and 180 harp trap nights, capturing 694 bats representing 36 species and five families. Our results confirm that primary forests in Vietnamese karst are exceptionally important for bat diversity, supporting substantial proportions of the national fauna. Disturbed and heavily degraded karst forests also appear capable of supporting relatively high numbers of bat species at low abundances, but their ability to do so in the longer term is in doubt and requires further research. Our findings of bats in relict forests on karst hillsides and ridgetops provide justification for their protection and raise the possibility that these may provide corridors for the movement of forest-dwelling bats within anthropogenic landscapes. Since the majority of Vietnamese karst landscapes remain unprotected however, the future of their biodiversity remains uncertain.

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Acknowledgements

In Vietnam, the authors are grateful to Vuong Tan Tu, Dao Nhan Loi and Pham Duc Tien for their invaluable assistance in the field, and to Lam Quang Oanh and Nguyen Tien Dung of Kim Hy Nature Reserve, and Trieu Van Luc of Bac Kan Provincial Forest Protection Department for permission to undertake research at Kim Hy (permissions no. 317/UBND-NV and 631/UBND-NV). Particular thanks are due to Vu Dinh Thong at the Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources in Hanoi, Fernando Potess of the People, Resources and Conservation Foundation and Mark Infield of Fauna and Flora International. We are also indebted to the Rufford Maurice Laing Foundation (UK), Aberdeen University and the Harrison Institute and Darwin Initiative (DEFRA, UK government) for their support.

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  1. Institute of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Zoology Building, Tillydrone Avenue, Aberdeen, AB24 2TZ, UK

    Neil M. Furey, Iain J. Mackie & Paul A. Racey

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  1. Neil M. Furey
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Correspondence to Neil M. Furey.

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Furey, N.M., Mackie, I.J. & Racey, P.A. Bat diversity in Vietnamese limestone karst areas and the implications of forest degradation. Biodivers Conserv 19, 1821–1838 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-010-9806-0

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