Low winter temperatures are a major driver of hibernation and migration in temperate North American bats. Hibernation and migration in turn affect bat mortality via white-nose syndrome and collisions with wind turbines. To describe winter bat acoustic activity across a wide temperature gradient and to understand species-specific responses to low temperatures, we recorded nightly acoustic activity of bats at 15 sites across the state of North Carolina, United States, from December through February 2016 – 2018. Bat acoustic activity was recorded at all sites during both winters. Nightly probability of bat acoustic presence regressed positively on ambient temperature. Nightly probability of presence in Lasionycteris noctivagans (silver-haired bat) and Eptesicus fuscus (big brown bat) regressed negatively on wind speed. The mean probability of presence within the same winter condition was highest for L. noctivagans, followed by E. fuscus, Perimyotis subflavus (tricolored bat), and Lasiurus cinereus (hoary bat). Differences in species’ mean body weight and roosting preference explained part of the variation of the species-specific probability of presence. Our results can be used to predict bat acoustic presence for these species across the southeastern United States in winter, and better understand the potential threats to bats such as white-nose syndrome and wind turbine interactions.

中文翻译：

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美国北卡罗莱纳州冬蝙蝠声活动的特定物种环境条件

冬季气温低是北美温带蝙蝠冬眠和迁徙的主要原因。冬眠和迁徙反过来会通过白鼻综合征和与风力涡轮机的碰撞影响蝙蝠的死亡率。为了描述整个温度梯度下的冬季蝙蝠声活动并了解特定物种对低温的反应，我们记录了2016年12月至2016年2月至2018年2月在美国北卡罗莱纳州的15个地点的蝙蝠夜间声活动。在两个冬季期间，所有地点都记录了蝙蝠的声活动。蝙蝠声音存在的夜间概率在环境温度下呈正向回归。在存在的夜间概率Lasionycteris noctivagans（银发BAT）和大棕鲇（大棕蝙蝠）的风速下降。L. noctivaganagans在同一冬季条件下的平均出现概率最高，其次是E. fuscus，Perimyotis subflavus（三色蝙蝠）和灰黄Lasiurus cinereus（白蝙蝠）。物种平均体重和栖息地偏好的差异解释了物种特定存在概率变化的一部分。我们的结果可用于预测冬季整个美国东南部这些物种的蝙蝠声音，并更好地了解蝙蝠的潜在威胁，例如白鼻综合症和风力涡轮机相互作用。