Climbats - COST Action CA18107
Climate Change and Bats: from Science to Conservation
Description of the Action
Climate change poses major threats to biological communities and the ecosystem services they provide. Bats are sensitive to human-driven habitat alteration, and changes in temperature and water availability induced by climate change may affect their distribution and survival.
Climate change is therefore likely to influence European bat populations and, by affecting insect consumption by bats in farmland, forests and urban areas, there are likely to be serious consequences for both conservation and the economy.
Focus Areas
Bat distribution change
Define, predict and quantify the effects of climate change on bats across Europe
Using state-of-art modelling approaches we will categorize European bat species according to their response to future climate change and identify those that warrant conservation measures.
Bat monitoring networks
Establish strategies to develop a network to monitor and predict changes in bat distribution and inform future management and policy
The work will focus on those species likely to be most responsive to climate change across Europe (indicator species) and establish areas where such species are likely to gain, lose or maintain suitable climatic space.
Insect consumption
Evaluate the effects of climate change on insectivory provided by bats in farmland
We will assess the importance of this ecosystem service across Europe for agricultural economy and society and estimate its current monitory value.
