Urban habitat use by bats at species and community levels across multiple spatial scales

Urbanisation is an extreme form of land-use change and a major driver of biodiversity loss, yet it remains unclear which specific urban features most shape bat communities and at what spatial scales. We used passive acoustic monitoring to investigate how habitat types influence bat occurrence and activity within a large metropolitan area in northern Italy. Sampling encompassed eight main urban habitats and multiple spatial scales, ranging from 100 to 5000 m around sampling sites. Species- and community-level patterns were analysed using regression and meta-regression models. Pipistrellus , Hypsugo , and Tadarida species were the most frequently contacted. However, P. kuhlii and P. nathusii activity peaked in suburban areas and green spaces, while P. pipistrellus was closely linked to water. Only T. teniotis was positively associated with dense urban fabric, with activity peaking during colder nights. Rare and specialist taxa such as Barbastella , Myotis , Plecotus , and Rhinolophus avoided urban cores, remaining confined to forest patches and green spaces. At community level, water distance was the main driver of bat distribution, with stronger effects at broader scales. Species mobility determined the optimal scale for modelling occurrence, with broad-scale models better explaining long-ranging and widespread taxa and fine-scale models fitting habitat specialists. In contrast, bat activity was best explained at finer scales (≤ 500 m). Our findings underscore the ecological value of urban green and blue spaces and highlight the importance of fine-scale habitat heterogeneity. Incorporating species-specific ecological requirements and scale-dependent responses into urban planning is essential for effective bat conservation.