site.btaWorld's Largest Nursery Colony of Two Bat Species Found in Bulgaria's Rhodope Mountains

Recent field research in Bulgaria's Madzharovo region (Southern Bulgaria) by a team of Bulgarian and Czech scientists has found the world’s largest nursery colony of two bat species. A research article on the lesser horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus hipposideros) and Geoffroy’s bat (Myotis emarginatus) colony in the Eastern Rhodope mountains was published Tuesday in the European Journal of Wildlife Research.

During their field research in the region of Madzharovo, the scientists found about 15,000 to 18,500 bats of eight species using an abandoned water reservoir and two buildings as a summer roost, representing around half of all the bat species registered in the region. While Bulgaria has a rich bat fauna, with large colonies found in caves, mines and other underground roosts, only a small proportion of bat nursery colony roosts have been documented in buildings, the research article reads.

The research team note the need of a regular monitoring programmes and Species Action Plans in Bulgaria, which will ensure the conservation of nursery colonies, not only in Madzharovo but also in the entire Eastern Rhodope mountains and help prevent future bat population declines.

The team of researchers was led by Dr Heliana Dundarova from the Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research with the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS). Participating were Jiri Pikula, Katerina Zukalova, Sarka Bednarikova, and Vladimir Piacek from the University of Veterinary Sciences in Brno, Petr Mrhalek and Jan Zukal from the Institute of Vertebrate Biology with the Czech Academy of Sciences, Boyan Petrov from the National Museum of Natural History with BAS, Krasimir Kirov and Vladimir Trifonov from Paisii Hilendarski University of Plovdiv, and Rashid Rashid from the Sofia-based Science for Nature Foundation.