Abstract
Reproductive ecology and roosting behavior of Murina ussuriensis were examined using dead-leaf Mallotus japonicus traps and radio transmitters in the warm-temperate forests in the Kyushu, Japan. Rates of capture varied between 6 to 19%, with a maximum rate of 36% on 9 October. Traps were mainly used by solitary males in non-reproductive seasons, whereas they were frequently used by females in the breeding season in July. Males frequently changed their roosts on the basis of radio-tracking and trapping methods. Parturition occurred in early June in the south of Kyushu, and about one month earlier than in Hiroshima Prefecture. Maternity colonies consisting of a few lactating females and young formed in summer. In mid-July, some of the young were weaned from their mothers and solitarily roosted. Not only males but also females roosted individually from August to October. However, their home ranges overlapped. Copulation may occur in October. One radio-tagged male roosted in a dead fallen tree in autumn. The dead-leaf M. japonicus traps were a very useful tool for investigating reproductive ecology and social structure of M. ussuriensis.
