DNA metabarcoding and spatial modelling link diet diversification with distribution homogeneity in European bats

Antton Alberdi (), Orly Razgour, Ostaizka Aizpurua, Roberto Novella-Fernandez, Joxerra Aihartza, Ivana Budinski, Inazio Garin, Carlos Ibáñez, Eñaut Izagirre, Hugo Rebelo, Danilo Russo, Anton Vlaschenko, Violeta Zhelyazkova, Vida Zrnčić and M. Thomas P. Gilbert
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Antton Alberdi: University of Copenhagen
Orly Razgour: University of Southampton
Ostaizka Aizpurua: University of Copenhagen
Roberto Novella-Fernandez: University of Southampton
Joxerra Aihartza: University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU
Ivana Budinski: University of Belgrade
Inazio Garin: University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU
Carlos Ibáñez: CSIC
Eñaut Izagirre: University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU
Hugo Rebelo: Universidade do Porto
Danilo Russo: Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II
Anton Vlaschenko: Bat Rehabilitation Center of Feldman Ecopark
Violeta Zhelyazkova: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences
Vida Zrnčić: Croatian Biospeleological Society
M. Thomas P. Gilbert: University of Copenhagen

Nature Communications, 2020, vol. 11, issue 1, 1-8

Abstract: Abstract Inferences of the interactions between species’ ecological niches and spatial distribution have been historically based on simple metrics such as low-resolution dietary breadth and range size, which might have impeded the identification of meaningful links between niche features and spatial patterns. We analysed the relationship between dietary niche breadth and spatial distribution features of European bats, by combining continent-wide DNA metabarcoding of faecal samples with species distribution modelling. Our results show that while range size is not correlated with dietary features of bats, the homogeneity of the spatial distribution of species exhibits a strong correlation with dietary breadth. We also found that dietary breadth is correlated with bats’ hunting flexibility. However, these two patterns only stand when the phylogenetic relations between prey are accounted for when measuring dietary breadth. Our results suggest that the capacity to exploit different prey types enables species to thrive in more distinct environments and therefore exhibit more homogeneous distributions within their ranges.

Date: 2020
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-14961-2

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