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Renee Lile - "Investigating the community composition and diet of bats in the Black Hills of South Dakota following white-nose syndrome invasion"

“I am beyond grateful to have my graduate research supported by the Biodiversity Institute. Being awarded the Biodiversity Graduate Student Research Enhancement Grant allows me to further my research on the ecology of western bats in a white-nose syndrome positive environment. These funds will support my summer research stipend and will cover the cost of sequencing both insect and internal parasite DNA from bat guano samples. Additionally, I am looking forward to sharing my research and information about bats with the residents of Wyoming through summer bat-walks and the Science Café series.”

Renee Lile

2025 Recipient of the Biodiversity Institute Graduate Student Excellence Grant

Department of Zoology and Physiology 

Program in Ecology and Evolution

Graduate Advisor: Riley Bernard 

Background:

Insectivorous bats in North America provide economically and environmentally important roles in top-down suppression of nocturnal insects. However, bats in North America face severe population declines due to factors including climate change, habitat loss, wind energy development, and disease. The fungal disease, white-nose syndrome (WNS), has proven to be devastating for a quarter of bat species in North America, altering the compositional diversity of remnant populations. First documented in New York, USA, in 2006, the fungus that causes WNS (Pseudogymnoascus destructans; Pd) is now confirmed in most states and Canadian provinces. To date, WNS has killed over six million bats and caused > 90% declines in regional populations of the federally endangered Myotis septentrionalis.

My research examines the effects of the WNS on the compositional diversity of bat populations in the Black Hills of South Dakota over seven years of disease invasion. Due to high mortality outcomes, I also focus on the trophic interactions between surviving bat species and their insect prey following disease establishment. The first two chapters of my dissertation aim to (a) characterize changes in bat assemblage and diversity following the introduction of WNS; (b) predict population trends of western bat species across a disease invasion gradient; (c) identify important insect prey and assess dietary diversity of individuals captured in a disease-positive environment; and (d) investigate factors influencing possible variation in diet among individuals over time.

By identifying shifts in bat populations and changes in insect prey composition, my research will provide critical insights into the ecological impacts of WNS in western South Dakota, as well as broader trends in WNS ecology and bat populations across the western USA. This will enable land managers to develop effective, data-driven conservation strategies, supporting a management approach that targets prey species and their habitats at the lower trophic levels, and enhancing ecosystem and bat health in the region.

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