Bats in the Peninsula: Italy as biogeography scenario of interaction between bats and global change

The biogeographic peculiarities of the peninsula and of the major Italian islands are a wonderful scenario in which to investigate the relationships between bats and their environments. The diversity of landscapes, including anthropic ones, present in this vast territory, with 36 species and a millenary history of agricultural and forestry transformations presents itself as a particularly interesting scenario for assessing the impacts that global change and human activities can cause on bat populations. An update of the distribution of the species and the different connections with the respective habitats will be presented to highlight which are the future areas of investigation that express the greatest interest. Specific examples then concern the Alpine populations being studied, the relationships with local human dimension and the interest in the complex phenology and viremia expressed in some areas. The relationship with public opinion has changed perspective after the pandemic. Another aspect of the investigation is the complexity of the aspects of conservation biology of the species that form large colonies in underground environments, and which then forage in large areas with very different levels of protection. The land use changes, with the impacts generated by the windfarms and the existing infrastructures, are then considered in the general perspective of conservation.