Research interests

• Artibeus jamaicensis
• Figs
• Keystone resource
• Calcium
• Fruit choice
• Reproduction

 

 

 

Scientific projects

Figs are considered keystone resources in tropical lowland forests worldwide because of their year-round availability and the large fruit crops, which are eaten by a wide variety of frugivores. Also the high calcium content found in many figs could contribute to the importance of figs in the diet of frugivores particularly during reproduction, as mammals and birds have to provide enough calcium for the skeletal development of their offspring, a mineral which is often limited. This is an assumption I want to test in my PhD-thesis. In fruit choice experiments I will determine whether pregnant and lactating females of the frugivorous bat species Artibeus jamaicensis are selecting more often calcium-rich fruits (particularly figs) above other fruits than non-reproductive females and males. Additionally, I will assess how much calcium is assimilated out of different fruits (figs and non-figs) eaten by captive A. jamaicensis and how the assimilation rates differ between different reproductive categories. I will also analyze the nutrient and mineral content of all fruits known to be eaten by bats in this area. While searching for fruits for my experiments I also re-census the fig trees on Barro Colorado Island, Panama, to update and analyze the census data taken of these trees since 20-30 years.

Publications

Heer K, Albrecht L, Kalko EKV (2010) Effects of ingestion by neotropical bats on germination parameters of native free-standing and strangler figs (Ficus sp., Moraceae). Oecologia 163:425-435

Albrecht L, Meyer CFJ, Kalko EKV (2007) Differential mobility in two small phyllostomid bats, Artibeus watsoni and Micronycteris microtis, in a fragmented Neotropical landscape. Acta Theriol 52: 141-149

Conference contributions

Albrecht L, Kalko EKV (2007) Breakdown of a keystone resource – A 30-year survey of fig trees on Barro Colorado Island, Panamá. Talk presented at the 20^th Annual Meeting of the Society for Tropical Ecology, Bonn, Germany

Albrecht L, Meyer CFJ, Kalko EKV (2007) Spatial patterns of activity of two small phyllostomid bat species in a fragmented landscape in Panama. Talk presented at the workgroup meeting of bat researchers, Berlin, Germany

Albrecht L, Meyer CFJ, Kalko EKV (2006) Differential mobility in two small phyllostomid bats, Artibeus watsoni and Micronycteris microtis, in a fragmented Neotropical landscape. Poster presented at the 19^th Annual Meeting of the Society for Tropical Ecology, Kaiserslautern, Germany