In times of rapid human population growth, accompanied by rampant habitat change knowledge of species potential to tolerate anthropogenically altered environments is essential for conservation efforts. Aerial insectivorous bat species are highly mobile animals and swift flyers which react quickly to changing environmental conditions. So far these species were considered to be less affected by urbanisation than less mobile taxa.

I am using acoustic monitoring to investigate the composition, dynamics and activity of high flying aerial insectivorous bats in Panama. The different acoustic monitoring sites of my current project are distributed along a strong anthropogenic gradient from mature forest to the heavily populated Panama City. On this regional scale I am assessing if species composition and activity of bats differ between sites and how factors as artificial light and insect availability influence the assemblage and species activity patterns. Furthermore I am assessing short-term (e. g., moon phase) and long term (season) effects on abundance and activity patterns of aerial insectivorous bats in mature forest versus urban areas.

Additionally, to pin point factors which are of prime importance for species presence in an anthropogenically influenced region I am focusing at a local scale on a small urban settlement which is surrounded by a large tract of continuous forest. I am especially interested in which species might adapt to possible advantages of anthropogenic influence e.g. street lights which accumulate large amounts of insects or houses which serve as additional roosting sites.

Le Provost G, Schenk NV, Penone C, Thiele J, Westphal C, Allan E, Ayasse M, Blüthgen N, Boeddinghaus RS, Boesing AL, Bolliger R, Busch V, Fischer M, Gossner MM, Hölzel N, Jung K, Kandeler E, Klaus VH, Kleinebecker T, Leimer S, Marhan S, Morris K, Müller S, Neff F, Neyret M, Oelmann Y, Perović DJ, Peter S, Prati D, Rillig MC, Saiz H, Schäfer D, Scherer-Lorenzen M, Schloter M, Schöning I, Schrumpf M, Steckel J, Steffan-Dewenter I, Tschapka M, Vogt J, Weiner C, Weisser W, Wells K, Werner M, Wilcke W & Manning P (2022). The supply of multiple ecosystem services requires biodiversity across spatial scales. Nature Ecology & Evolution . https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-022-01918-5

Jung K, Threlfall (2018) Trait-dependent tolerance of bats to urbanization: a global meta-analysis

von Hoermann C, Jauch D, Kubotsch C, Reichel-Jung K, Steiger S, Ayasse M (2018) Effects of abiotic environmental factors and land use on the diversity of carrion-visiting silphid beetles (Coleoptera: Silphidae): A large scale carrion study. PLOS ONE 13: e0196839.

Schall P, Gossner MM, Heinrichs S, Fischer M, Boch S, Prati D, Jung K, Baumgartner V, Blaser S, Böhm S, Buscot F, Daniel R, Goldmann K, Kaiser K, Kahl T, Lange M, Müller J, Overmann J, Renner SC, Schulze ED, Sikorski J, Tschapka M, Türke M, Weisser WW, Wemheuer B, Wubet T, Ammer C. "The impact of even‐aged and uneven‐aged forest management on regional biodiversity of multiple taxa in European beech forests." Journal of Applied Ecology 55, no. 1 (2018): 267-278.

Jung K, Molinari J, Kalko EKV (2014) Driving factors for the evolution of species-specific echolocation call design in New World free-tailed bats (Molossidae). PLOS ONE 9(1):e85279

Allan E, Bossdorf O, Dormann CF, Pratia D, Gossner MM, Tscharntke T, Blüthgen N, Bellach M, Birkhofer K, Boch S, Böhm SM, Börschig C, Chatzinotas A, Christ S, Daniel R, Diekötter T, Fischer C, Friedl T, Glaser K, Hallmann C, Hodac L, Hölzel N, Jung K, Klein AM, Klaus VH, Kleinebecker T, Krauss J, Lange M, Morris EK, Müller J, Nacken H, Pašali E, Rillig MC, Rothenwöhrer C, Schall P, Christoph Scherberf, Schulze W, Sochera SA, Steckel J, Steffan-Dewenterh I, Türke M, Weiner CN, Werner M, Westphal C, Wolters V, Wubet T, Gockel S, Gorke M, Hemp A, Renner SC, Schöning I, Pfeiffer S, König-Ries B, Buscot F, Linsenmair KE, Schulze E-D, Weisser WW, Fischer M (2014) Interannual variation in land-use intensity enhances grassland multidiversity. PNAS 111(1):308-313

Weinbeer M, Kalko EKV, Jung K (2013) Behavioral flexibility of the trawling long-legged bat, Macrophyllum macrophyllum (Phyllostomidae). Frontiers in Physiology 4:Article 342

Geipel I, Jung K, Kalko EKV (2013) Perception of silent and motionless prey on vegetation by echolocation in the gleaning bat Micronycteris microtis. Proc R Soc B 280:20122830

Jung K, Kaiser S, Böhm SM, Nieschulze J, Kalko EKV (2012) Moving in three dimensions: effects of structural complexity on occurrence and activity of insectivorous bats in managed forest stands. J Appl Ecol 49:523-531

Knörnschild M, Jung K, Nagy M, Metz M, Kalko EKV (2012) Bat echolocation calls facilitate social communication. Proc R Soc B 279:4827-4835

Jung K. &  Kalko E.K.V.(2011) Adaptability and vulnerability of high flying Neotropical aerial insectivorous bats to urbanization. Diversity and Distributions, 17(2): 262–274. 

Meyer CFJ, Aguiar LMS, Aguirre LF, Baumgarten J, Clarke, FM, Cosson J-F, Estrada Villegas S, Fahr J,  Faria D, Furey N, Henry M, Hodgkison R, Jenkins RKB, Jung KG, Kingston T, Kunz TH, MacSwiney Gonzalez MC, Patterson BD, Pons J-M, Racey PA, Rex K, Sampaio EM, Solari S, Stoner KE,  Voigt CC, Staden v.D, Weise CD, Kalko EKV (2011) Accounting for detectability improves estimates of species richness in tropical bat surveys. Journal of Applied Ecology 48:777-787

Meyer CFJ, Aguiar LMS, Aguirre LF, Baumgarten J, Clarke FM, Cosson J-F, Estrada Villegas S, Fahr J, Faria D, Furey NM, Henry M, Hodgkison R, Jenkins RKB, Jung KG, Kingston T, Kunz TH, MacSwiney Gonzalez MC, Moya IM, Pons J-M, Racey PA, Rex K, Sampaio EM, Stoner KE, Voigt CC, Staden Dv, Weise CD, Kalko EKV (2010) Long-term monitoring of tropical bats for anthropogenic impact assessment: gauging the statistical power to detect population change. Biol Conserv 143:2797–2807

Jung, K. & Kalko, E.K.V. (2010) Where forest meets urbanization: foraging plasticity of aerial insectivorous bats in an anthropogenically altered environment. Journal of Mammalogy 91:144-153

Jung K, Kalko EKV, von Helversen O (2007) Echolocation calls in Central American emballonurid bats: signal design and call frequency alternation. J Zool (Lond) 272: 125-137