Camilo A. Calderón Acevedo

Nectar drinking efficiency in lonchophylline and glossophagine bats: are “pump-like” or “mop-like” tongues better? Nectarivory has independently evolved twice in Neotropical bats, resulting in lapping “mop-like” tongues and non-lapping “pump-like” tongues. We examined t

10/10 🧵Read the full paper to dive deeper into our methods & findings! doi.org/10.1093/jmam... if you don't have access to it, you can request it via Researchgate. www.researchgate.net/publication/...

9/10 🧵In conclusion: Tongue extension seems to be a better predictor of nectar extraction efficiency than tongue morphology itself. More species data are needed to generalize, but this study sheds new light on bat-flower co-evolution! #Science #Biodiversity

8/10 🧵Despite these behavioral and morphological differences, our results suggest that both "pump-like" and "mop-like" tongues are surprisingly comparable in their nectar extraction abilities across various floral shapes. Adaptation in action!

7/10 🧵Glossophagines (mop-tongues) increased their visit duration to get more nectar from deeper flowers. But Lonchophylla robusta (pump-tongue) actually decreased visit duration with deeper nectar, showing a sharper drop in consumption. Fascinating behavioral differences!

6/10 🧵Key finding 2: Nectar depth is a challenge for all! As nectar got deeper, extraction efficiency declined at a similar rate for all species. But how they dealt with it was different...

5/10 🧵Even within the Anoura species, individuals with longer tongues were more efficient at extracting nectar. This suggests that tongue length is a crucial factor for these amazing pollinators!

4/10 🧵Key finding 1: Tongue extension matters! We found a strong link between maximum tongue extension and nectar extraction efficiency across all species. Lonchophylla robusta, with intermediate tongue extension, showed intermediate efficiency.

3/10 🧵We studied 3 co-existing species in the Ecuadorian Andes: 2 glossophagines (Anoura caudifer, A. cultrata) and 1 lonchophylline (Lonchophylla robusta). Using flight-cage experiments, we measured tongue extension & nectar extraction efficiency across different flower types.

2/10 🧵 In the bat family Phyllostomidae, nectarivory evolved twice, leading to two distinct tongue types: the "mop-like" (lapping) tongues of glossophagines & the "pump-like" (grooved) tongues of lonchophyllines. What does this mean for efficiency?

1/10 🧵🦇🌺 Our latest study dives into the amazing world of nectar-feeding bats & their super specialized tongues! Ever wondered how different bat species get their nectar fix? #BatResearch #Pollination #Ecology
doi.org/10.1093/jmam...

A Holocene bat colony collapse highlights the importance of hot caves in the Caribbean | Biology Letters Species loss in fragile insular communities can alter the composition and stability of local assemblages. Climate change or anthropogenic pressures are sometimes attributed to the loss of Caribbean bats, but other factors are elusive to document. We ...

This ancient bat colony collapse underscores the importance of cave stability for biodiversity. With ongoing environmental changes, understanding these past events is crucial for present-day conservation efforts. Read the full story: royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/... #ClimateChange

The likely culprit? We suggest structural changes in the cave over time led to the loss of crucial "heat traps," making it unsuitable for these temperature-dependent bats. This highlights the fragility of these unique roosting sites. #CaveEcology #Microclimate #Conservation

Shockingly, fossil evidence from Cueva Matos reveals the presence of 10 bat species, compared to only 3 today! Notably, nearly 90% of the lost species were specialists that rely on hot cave environments. #Extirpation #FossilRecord

A Holocene bat colony collapse highlights the importance of hot caves in the Caribbean | Biology Letters Species loss in fragile insular communities can alter the composition and stability of local assemblages. Climate change or anthropogenic pressures are sometimes attributed to the loss of Caribbean bats, but other factors are elusive to document. We ...

‪Our new paper with @justbernstein.bsky.social and our team led by @mormoops.bsky.social at @amnh.org unearths a Holocene bat colony collapse in a Puerto Rican cave. What caused this biodiversity loss? #Paleontology #BatEcology #PuertoRico royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

A Holocene bat colony collapse highlights the importance of hot caves in the Caribbean | Biology Letters Species loss in fragile insular communities can alter the composition and stability of local assemblages. Climate change or anthropogenic pressures are sometimes attributed to the loss of Caribbean ba...

Wondering how fossils 🦴 can tell the stories of the past? Check out our new paper on Holocene #bats in the Caribbean, and what they taught us about extinction! 🦇 Congratulations to lead @mormoops.bsky.social at the AMNH, and all collaborators royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

With the abrupt end to the Mammal-L list serv, we are working on a Google Group option, American Society of Mammalogists List Serv - Google Groups, which you are welcome to join.

groups.google.com/u/0/g/mammal...

There will be some hiccups as we navigate this option, please be patient

Colleagues,

Many of you have reached out to ask if ASM could do something about the recent governmental turmoil in federal agencies. In response, ASM has proudly signed on to multiple statements and letters emphasizing our commitment to both science and human diversity.

Bat/Bird Census

Bats and birds both evolved flight and rely on similar resources. LongBAT & the bird census together will help us understand how these groups respond to environmental changes. Follow our project for updates! #STRI #Research stri.si.edu/story/batbir...

Bat/Bird Census

Our team uses mistnetting and acoustic monitoring to record bat echolocation calls, providing crucial data on bat populations in Soberanía National Park. Learn more about our methods and goals! #BatResearch #AcousticMonitoring #Mistnetting #Wildlife stri.si.edu/story/batbir...

Bat/Bird Census

We've launched LongBAT, a long-term census of bats in Panama's Soberanía National Park, mirroring the 50-year bird census. Join us in studying how environmental changes impact these amazing creatures! #LongBAT #BatCensus #Panama #Conservation stri.si.edu/story/batbir...

Registration Please recognize that by registering and submitting an abstract for ASM 2025 you are agreeing to abide by ASM’s Statement of Inclusion and Code of Conduct. Please take the time to read these docume…

Greetings fellow mammalogists!

Early registration (mammalmeetings.org/registration/) and abstract submission (mammalmeetings.org/abstracts/ deadlines extended until 11:59 pm Pacific time April 7th, 2025 !!!!

Back from Panama likely concluding this years‘ #fieldwork for me. Meet some of the #bats we captured, measured and released on our last night. #STRI

New #SORTEEjournalclub post alert!

@tarapell.bsky.social & @mammalbiogeography.bsky.social discuss the opportunities & challenges associated with using open-sourced genetic data for large-scale biogeography research.

sortee.org/blog/2025/03...

Environmental and geographic drivers of global bat phylogenetic diversity https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.02.18.636314v1

Your last date to vote for the ASM bylaws changes is this Friday, February 21. follow: asm.wildapricot.org/Sys/Poll/59301

We have shifted to online nominations/elections for officers and board members: www.mammalsociety.org/index.php/co.... Nominations accepted 1 January – 1 April (23:59 EST)

The Way We Were: He wasn't getting ahead in a cotton field so he reached for stars instead Dr. Mack Gipson Jr. was one of the few men who could compare the soil of an Edgefield County cotton field to the red sands of Mars.

Dr. Mack Gipson Jr studied #geology and #soils.

www.augustachronicle.com/story/lifest...

#28DaysOfBlackSTEMHistory
#BlackHistoryMonth

Your last date to vote for the ASM bylaws changes is this Friday, February 21. follow: asm.wildapricot.org/Sys/Poll/59301

We have shifted to online nominations/elections for officers and board members: www.mammalsociety.org/index.php/co.... Nominations accepted 1 January – 1 April (23:59 EST)

Fellow Mammalogists.

As many of you are aware, science is in a state of turmoil in the United States. Recent efforts to drastically reduce government workforces and research funding for science will lead to many adverse consequences for Earth’s remaining natural ecosystems.

The American Society of Mammalogists (ASM) is the world’s largest and oldest professional organization devoted to the study of mammals. As a global leader in the science of mammalogy, it behooves us to reaffirm our unwavering commitment to our core mission:

to promote science as the basis for managing and conserving mammals, to diversify the field of mammalogy, and to advance the scientific understanding of mammals globally. This means we stand committed to supporting all members of our scientific community regardless of ancestry, color,