Background

Ghana is one of the six bat diversity hotspots on the African continent, yet its caves have not been fully explored for the bats they host.

Research Aims

We aimed to assess the species composition and diversity of five caves in central Ghana and identified those needing immediate conservation attention.

Methods

Using mist-nets, we captured bats over 102 full nights between October 2010 and July 2012 from the Upper Guinean forest and Savannah regions in central Ghana.

Results

A total of 10,226 bats belonging to nine species were recorded. PERMANOVA suggested significant variation in species composition among the caves. A SIMPER analysis revealed Coleura afra and Hipposideros jonesi to be the main discriminating species between caves, with a dominance of Hipposideros cf. ruber in all caves. The Bat Cave Vulnerability Index (BCVI) revealed Mframabuom cave from the Upper Guinean forest region as a high priority cave hosting threatened species, yet highly disturbed. The remaining caves were identified as medium priority caves.

Conclusion

The results of the study suggest the need for further research and an immediate conservation strategy as essential for approaching national conservation goals.

中文翻译：

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加纳中部洞穴栖息蝙蝠的多样性和保护

背景

加纳是非洲大陆的六个蝙蝠多样性热点之一，但其洞穴尚未完全探索它们所栖息的蝙蝠。

研究目标

我们旨在评估加纳中部五个洞穴的物种组成和多样性，并确定那些需要立即保护的洞穴。

方法

2010 年 10 月至 2012 年 7 月期间，我们使用雾网从加纳中部的上几内亚森林和萨凡纳地区捕获了 102 个整夜的蝙蝠。

结果

总共记录了属于 9 个物种的 10,226 只蝙蝠。PERMANOVA 表明洞穴之间的物种组成存在显着差异。SIMPER 分析显示Coleura afra和Hipposideros jonesi是洞穴之间的主要区分物种，其中Hipposideros cf. 合成橡胶在所有的洞穴。Bat Cave Vulnerability Index (BCVI) 显示来自上几内亚森林地区的 Mframabuom 洞穴是一个高度优先的洞穴，收容受威胁的物种，但受到高度干扰。其余洞穴被确定为中等优先级洞穴。

结论

研究结果表明，需要进一步研究和立即制定保护战略，这对于实现国家保护目标至关重要。