Tropical Natural History 12(2): 257-260, October 2012 2012 by Chulalongkorn University

Short Note Predation on the Kelaart's Pipistrelle , Pipistrellus ceylonicus Kelaart (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae), by the Reddish Parachute , Poecilotheria rufilata Pocock (Araneae: Theraphosidae), in Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, Kerala, India

1, 2,* 1 KARUMAMPOYIL SAKTHIDAS ANOOP DAS , LEELAMBIKA KRISHNAN SREEKALA AND OLAPILAN ABDURAHIMAN1

1Centre for Conservation Ecology, Department of Zoology, M.E.S Mampad College, Malappuram - 676 542, Kerala, INDIA 2Wildlife Research and Conservation Trust, Anupallavi, Chungathara P.O., Malappuram- 679 334, Kerala, INDIA * Corresponding author. E-mails: [email protected]; [email protected] and [email protected] Received: 9 May 2012; Accepted: 28 July 2012

Compared to other , Chiropterans are usually anecdotal. In () have never been claimed to form contrast, in many chiropteran trophic studies important components in the diet of many the corollary is found, that is are predators1, although only a few attempts reported to be common food items of bats. have been made to document the diversity The genus Poecilotheria is made of predators of any particular bat species up of arboreal species that can be found in and the effects of predation on its India and Sri Lanka. The genus is placed population. However, because bats are long- within the poorly studied family lived and reproduce slowly, the impact of Theraphosidae3. The current lack of predation on their populations is probably information on this spider family is greater than assumed2. Most available data probably largely due to the difficulties in on bat predation and bat predators are sparse observing individuals in the wild, and a or anecdotal, but a few detailed natural generally low yield of specimens from field history studies have provided important collection efforts. Little is known about the information on this topic1,2. behaviour and food habits of members of A large variety of prey on the Poecilotheria genus, or indeed of the bats (reviewed in1) while the few reports of Theraphosidae family, of , and even predation involve cockroaches, fewer studies that document the species in ants, beetle larvae, and spiders1. Because of the wild. However, from what information their carnivorous tendency, terrestrial is available, many and spiders have habitat, and either gregarious foraging or been reported to be common food items in large body size, a diversity of arthropods, the diet of several larger species in the including praying mantises, wasps, genus2. Nevertheless, in this short mygalomorph spiders, , solpugids, communication we report the predation of decapod crustaceans, and scolopendrid the Kelaart's Pipistrelle bat, Pipistrellus , are potential bat predators1. ceylonicus Kelaart, 1852 (Chiroptera, However, reports on bat predation by Vespertilionidae), by the Reddish Parachute 258 TROPICAL NATURAL HISTORY. 12(2), OCTOBER 2012 tarantula spider, Poecilotheria rufilata during a careful 30 min examination of this Pocock, 1899 (Araneae, Theraphosidae), in area using flashlights, and so the Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, Kerala. examination was concluded at 19:30 hrs to P. rufilata is classified as an endangered limit disturbance. Observations were made species in the IUCN Red list4 and is from less than 1 m away. We report here on endemic to the southern region of the the predation events, by analysis of the Western Ghats at an altitude of less than 500 pictures taken at the time with a Canon EOS m amsl. The area of occurrence, Rebel SXi camera. Both the predator and encompassing known and inferred prey were not collected as we did not have distribution, is less than 5,000 km², while collection permission, and so the the area of occupancy is less than 2,000 km² identifications were made from the covering Trivandrum4-6, Ponmudi, Kallar photographs taken at different angles with and Peppara Dam7 in Kerala, and reference to the original and subsequent Agastyavanam Reserve7 in Tamil Nadu. descriptions8-10. During the same The observation reported here was made observation period, 17 young bats were on the 10th November 2011 inside a building recorded roosting at the roof of the building owned by the Kerala Forest Department at at the same site as where the predation event Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, which covers a occurred. Note, however, that the spider (P. total area of 90.42 km2 and is situated rufilata) and its bat prey (P. ceylonicus) (10°15´-10°22´N, 77°05´-77°15´E) between were about 10 m away from the bat roosting the Amaravati Wildlife Sanctuary in Tamil site and were hidden from direct sight of the Nadu and the Eravikulam National Park in roost by a wall. We used the average length Kerala at an elevation of 500 m amsl. Apart to calculate, by proportion, the predator and from the dry thorn forests it has a wide array prey sizes in the pictures. The bat has a of habitat types, such as deciduous forests, zygomatic width of 10-10.9 mm and length dry thorny forest, riparian types, sholas and of 5.5 to 6.0 cm10, whereas the spider had a grasslands, due to the significant variation in length of 27 mm, width of 19 mm and total altitude and rainfall, and these are body length of 65 mm, and so would weigh interspersed with plains, hillocks, rocks and about 28 to 85 grams8. The spider was cliffs that provide microhabitats for varied holding the bat with its fore legs and the bat forms of life. The area is situated in the rain was apparently dead (Fig. 1). We suggest shadow region of the Western Ghats, getting that the bat was alive when captured and rain mostly during the North-East monsoons was brought down to the observed site after (October-December). tranquilizing it, although we did not observe The observation took place in a damp this. This notion, and that the spider killed place in a concrete building, with a low light the young bat in situ shortly before we level. For roosting, vertebrates and found them, is based upon the absence of invertebrates tend to shift from their natural rigor mortis, the presence of fresh blood in microhabitats to manmade structural sites. wounds, and the cleanliness of the pelage, The spider was anchored about 1.2 m from which all indicate that the bat died shortly the nearest vertical wall and 1.5 m from the before the observation was made and had ground. Since the spider and bat were easily not been transported far or from any other visible to us, we are confident that we did distant place. Note that the bat roosting time not overlook them or other specimens including the time of entrance into and DAS ET AL. – PREDATION OF A BAT BY A TARANTULA SPIDER 259

FIGURE 1. A tarantula spider (Poecilotheria rufilata), holding and eating a freshly-killed Kelaart’s pipistrelle bat (Pipistrellus ceylonicus), while anchored on the wall in a building at Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, Kerala. emergence time from roosts to support this prey to invertebrate predators. In general, is, however, not known, whilst the breeding arachnids play a key role in food webs cycle of P. ceylonicus is reported to be acting as important predators and linking aseasonal11 and so the age of the assumed different trophic levels3. The predation young bat cannot be deduced. event described in this note highlights the Although spider predation is well generalist and trophic opportunism of documented in the literature, reports of spiders, where their diet composition may spiders preying upon bats are scarce. be related to the availability of resources. Theraphosidae that prey upon chiropterans The role of invertebrates as predators is well have been reported before, highlighting the documented in the terrestrial environment, family of spiders as important predators9,12. but these observations in accord with others These spiders have nocturnal opportunist highlight that spiders can perform two predator habits, and are generally found near actions that most other bat predators cannot. dry environments3,12. Information about the First, they climb walls to catch and eat hunting behaviour of Theraphosidae spiders perching bats, which would most likely be is, however, still scarce3, but as stated bats related to the capacity of to detect have been recorded as prey. The relationship prey vibrations14. Second, they can subdue between prey and predator size is an bats substantially heavier than themselves. important determinant of the predation Such capabilities may allow large spiders to pressure13. In this way, younger bats with a prey on bats in what otherwise would be small body size and weight are potential safe roosts. 260 TROPICAL NATURAL HISTORY. 12(2), OCTOBER 2012

Theraphosids are common in the tropics, conservation planning at a landscape level in the and are of medical and pharmacological Western Ghats of Uttara Kannada district, Karnataka http://www.zooreach.org/ZOO_WILD interest. Despite their importance, little _Projects/Small_Grant_Completion_Report_acces information exists on their behaviour under sed on 16-02-2012. natural conditions. On the other hand, most 4. Siliwal, M., Molur, S. and Daniel, B.A. 2008. observations of predation on bats involve Poecilotheria rufilata. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red easily observed raptorial around North List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. 15 (Internet address: www.iucnredlist.org. Downloaded American caves . There is little information on 20 April 2012). on other predators of bats, particularly in the 5. Pocock, R.I., 1899b. The genus Poecilotheria: its tropics where bats and their enemies are the habits, history and species. Annals and Magazine most diverse. Further research is needed, of Natural History. 3: 82-96 . 6. Pocock, R.I., 1899a. The great Indian Spiders. Journal both to learn more about the foraging of Bombay Natural History Society. 12: 121-133. ecology of theraphosids, especially of the 7. Pocock, R.I., 1900. The Fauna of British India large ones, and to evaluate the impact of including Ceylon and Burma, Arachnida, Taylor diverse predators on tropical bat populations. and Francis, London. 8. Carpenter P. 1996. The illustrated redescription of Poecilotheria rufilata Pocock, 1899. - Exothermae ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Magazine, Exothermae Publishing, Belgium. No. 0 (special edition), 34 p. 9. Smith, A. and Kirk, P. 2002. A Field Guide on the The authors acknowledge Drs. L. Theraphosid Spiders of Indian & Sri Lanka Vijayan, V.S. Vijayan, R. Sankaran, P.A. particularly the genus Poecilotheria. Zoo Outreach Azeez, T.V. Sajeev, P. Balakrishnan, M. organisation, Coimbatore: (Internet address: Siliwal, S. Molur, A. Smith and P.R. Arun www.zooreach.org/ZOO_WILD_Projects/Report). 10. Smith A.T., Xie, Y., Hoffmann, S.R., Lunde, D., for their support. Thanks to K.K. Abida, Drs. MacKinnon, J., Wilson, D.E. and Wozencraft, K. Seedikkoya, K. M. Ismail, P.P Majeed, W.C. 2008. A Guide to the Mammals of China. C.K. Nistar, E. Jawahar, Raveendranath, Published by Princeton University Press. pp 543. Narayanan and R. Dhanya for their help. We 11. Yapa, W.B. and Ratnasooriya, W.D. 2008. Ecology and Biology of Sri Lankan Bats. Report are thankful to the anonymous referees for submitted to the Department of Zoology, their valuable comments. We express our University of Colombo, Colombo 3. gratitude to the Department of Forests and 12. Gallon, R.C. 2000. The Natural History of Wildlife, Kerala and UNEP-EPLC, South Tarantula Spiders in by British Tarantula Society Korea for their assistance. http://www.bts.ndirect.co.uk/natural.htm. 13. Toledo, L.F., Ribeiro, R.S. and Haddad, C.F.B. 2007. Anurans as prey: an exploratory analysis and size relationships between predators and their LITERATURE CITED prey. Journal of Zoology. 271: 170-177.

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