Macroecological Patterns of Geographical Co‐Occurrence in Phyllostomid Bats According to Their Dietary and Climatic Niches

ABSTRACT Introduction Species geographic co‐occurrence is shaped by both climatic preferences (climatic niche) and biotic interactions such as trophic resource competition (dietary niche). Although climatic niches are generally thought to drive broad‐scale geographic distributions and dietary niches to influence local‐scales dynamics, the limited data available for dietary niches may have led to an underestimation of its role at broad scales. Aim We assessed how geographical co‐occurrence between species of the bat family Phyllostomidae, the most ecologically diverse mammalian family, may be influenced by similarities in their climatic and dietary niches. Methods We conducted a systematic literature review to obtain data on food resources consumed (dietary niches) by phyllostomid bats and on their geographic distributions and climate preferences (climatic niches) from online databases. Then, we constructed and correlated similarity matrices of geographic co‐occurrence, climatic and dietary niches at the family and subfamily levels. Results Family‐level analyses revealed significant positive relationships among geographic overlap and both climatic and dietary niche similarities, although climatic niches appear to be more important in determining geographic co‐occurrence. Variations in these patterns became evident when examining subfamilies. Conclusions Our study shows that climatic niches play a fundamental role in driving geographical co‐occurrence of phyllostomids, often outweighing the role of dietary niches in importance. We suggest that climatic variation across the American tropics not only shapes the geographic distribution of phyllostomid bats but also modulates the availability and exploitation of different food resources. Divergent patterns among subfamilies may reflect the dietary specialisations inherent to each subfamily.