Diversity and distribution of bats in and around Campo-Ma’an National Park, Cameroon, with an initial acoustic database

Located in a remote area in south Cameroon within the Guineo-Congolian Rainforest biodiversity hotspot, Campo-Ma’an National Park (CMNP) and its surroundings face intense anthropogenic pressures yet harbor a diverse bat assemblage essential for ecosystem services, including pollination, seed dispersal, and pest control. We conducted the first systematic bat inventory in CMNP, southern Cameroon, integrating capture-based surveys, acoustic monitoring, and mitochondrial DNA sequencing across 4 habitat types and 4 climatic seasons from August 2023 to February 2025. Over 73 successful sampling nights (5,256 mist net-hours, 876 harp trap-hours), we captured 625 bats representing 32 species across 20 genera and 6 families (~27% of Cameroon's chiropteran fauna). Notable records include the IUCN Data Deficient Casinycteris campomaanensis and Myotis dieteri , and the Endangered Pseudoromicia roseveari . First country records include Rhinolophus denti (genetically confirmed) and Myotis dieteri , the latter also representing the first documented occurrence of this species within a protected area globally. Potential additional first country records, pending further genetic confirmation, include R. cf. blasii , R. cf. acrotis, and Glauconycteris cf. humeralis . Primary forests supported highest species richness (23 species, H' = 2.24), including several rare species captured exclusively in this habitat ( M. dieteri , Nycteris arge , Kerivoula phalaena ), while farms exhibited the highest abundance (31.2% of total captures), dominated by frugivorous generalists. The Great Rainy Season yielded the greatest diversity (22 species), whereas the Great Dry Season yielded peak abundance (34.72%). Multivariate analyses revealed significant habitat-season effects on assemblage structure. Acoustic characterization of 22 species established the first regional call reference library, with high peak frequency variability in Hipposideros cf. ruber (SD = ±41.25 kHz) suggesting cryptic diversity. Cytochrome-b sequencing corrected ~10% of our morphological identifications, confirming Ps. roseveari and R. denti, while high genetic and acoustic variability in Hipposideros cf. ruber suggests unresolved cryptic diversity. These results emphasize CMNP’s importance for bat conservation, including threatened and data-deficient species amid threats from escalating anthropogenic pressures such as deforestation and agro-industrial expansion. We recommend incorporating bat-friendly practices, such as preserving primary forests, maintaining habitat corridors, and promoting fruit tree agroforestry into management plans. Future efforts should expand genetic sampling and apply species distribution modeling to better resolve taxonomic uncertainties and predict habitat suitability.