Social Calls of the Bats of Britain and Ireland

By (author) Neil Middleton, Andrew Froud, Keith French Foreword by Sandie Sowler

Publication date:

01 September 2014

Length of book:

200 pages

Publisher

Pelagic Publishing

Dimensions:

234x156mm
6x9"

ISBN-13: 9781907807978

Bats are fascinating mammals about which we still have much to learn. As well as using ultrasonic echolocation calls for orientation and while foraging, they also have a complex array of vocalisations for communication. These are known as social calls and are an essential component of their colonial lifestyle.

This book brings together the current state of knowledge of social calls relating to the bat species occurring within Britain and Ireland, with some additional examples from species represented elsewhere in Europe. It includes access to a downloadable library of calls to be used in conjunction with the book.

Downloadable call library 
Social calls are complex and intriguing to listen to; they are after all produced with listeners in mind (other bats). To enjoy and fully appreciate social calls the reader must also have the opportunity to become a listener: each of the presented sonograms in the book is cross-referenced to downloadable ‘time expanded’ .wav sound files which are contained within a much wider library of calls for you to explore.

Included in Social Calls of the Bats of Britain and Ireland 
The authors start with an overview of the species of bats in Britain and Ireland (Chapter 1), and then introduce us to communication within the social world of bats (Chapter 2). Referencing the latest research, the authors explore how these calls can be classified according to their structure, and in many cases the context in which the calls are thought to be emitted (Chapter 3). Chapter 4 addresses aspects of survey methodology to be considered by those studying social calls. This leads on to the analysis of calls (Chapter 5), detailing the specific methods used and parameters commonly measured by researchers.

The final, and main chapter (Chapter 6) introduces the 23 species covered in the book giving each a detailed profile including: habitat preferences, typical roosting locations, roost emergence times, mating strategies and maternity behaviour. Each species profile includes what is known about the social calls for that species and this text is supported by colour sonograms (created using Pettersson BatSound V4.1) of most of the calls discussed. Each sonogram is linked to a .wav sound file (Time Expansion x10) within the downloadable library. The sound files allow the reader to hear, as well as see, the calls produced using any bat sound analysis software that supports the .wav format.

The authors conclude with a bibliography and an extensive list of references directly cross-referenced throughout the book.

The scope of this book is to review the social calls of the 17 endemic and six vagrant species of bats in the UK and Ireland. The authors explain the difference between the classification of ‘echolocation’ calls of bats for the purposes of foraging, navigation and reducing exposure to predation, from the range of ‘social’ calls and describe the reasons both how and why bats communicate at the species and interspecies level socially.

The scope of the book to focus on ‘social’ communication is both ambitious and evolutionary. In the foreword Dr Sandie Sowler MCIEEM recognises the importance of this work to inform and educate on a little understood area of communication among bats. She hopes that this will encourage further research into this area for the improvement in understanding the behaviour of bats.

The book has many Spectogram graphics for the social calls of each species in various situations, and provides access to an online resource for audio and electronic files. This facility will be of use to anyone interested in listening to the fascinating range of bat calls. I recommend this book to all students, professionals and amateurs interested in developing their knowledge with this fascinating group of mammals.