Bats in Habitats, Bats as Habitats: Integrating synergistic ecological interactions across levels of community organization

Melissa Ingala, Hernani Oliveira , Lexi E. Frank , Mudasar Hussain, Adeel Kazam, Daniel J Becker , Caroline Cummings, Munkhnast Dalannast, Tigga Kingston, Jennifer Krauel, Carla Mavian, Clifton D. McKee , Santiago Perea, A. Nayelli Rivera-Villanueva, Juliane Schaer , Kelly Speer, Nia Toshkova, Susan M. Tsang, Amy Wray, Riley Bernard, Sophie Borthwick, Jeffrey T. Foster, Md Ashraf Ul Hasan, David Wechuli, M. Elise Lauterbur 

Global biodiversity and ecosystem function are the result of complex networks of interactions and feedbacks between animals and their environments, which in turn are affected by the interactions and feedbacks between mammals and the organisms they host. Bats are important contributors to ecosystems and biodiversity maintenance, so understanding their complex interaction networks, including the main drivers of and responses to ecological and environmental changes and their global implications, requires adopting a systems-based perspective. In this review, we advocate for an approach that takes interacting systems into account from the outset of study design by explicitly probing hypotheses that cross levels of biological organization. By leveraging a hierarchical approach, we can arrive at a clearer picture of the specific threats facing bats and identify possible measures to mitigate adverse impacts. To understand these complex interactions and their implications for conservation, ecosystem health, and human health, we need an ecological framework that recognizes that changes in habitats not only affect macrofauna, but also cascade through different levels of the system. This review provides a roadmap for bat specialists and “bat beginners” from orthogonal fields to apply systems-thinking to yield a more holistic view of ecological complexity.