E.W. Valdez D. W. Sparks 2003 <p>We examined 56 fecal pellets from under a maternity colony of big free-tailed bats (<i>Nyctinomops macrotis</i>) in the Jemez Mountains of northern New Mexico. The most important food items, listed in order of decreasing percent volume, were Cicadellidae, leafhoppers (26.7% volume, 58.9% frequency); Ichneumonidae, Ichneumon wasps (19.3% volume, 35.7% frequency); and Lepidoptera, moths (17.2% volume, 82.1% frequency). Overall, the most important orders as prey consumed, listed by decreasing percent volume, were Homoptera (27.6% volume, 62.5% frequency), Hymenoptera (19.5% volume, 37.5% frequency), Lepidoptera (17.2% volume, 82.1% frequency), Hemiptera (11.7% volume, 37.5% frequency), and Diptera (10.6% volume, 50.0% frequency). Our study documents an unusually varied diet, as previous studies indicated that these bats fed almost exclusively on moths.</p> application/pdf 10.1894/0038-4909(2003)048<0132:FHONMA>2.0.CO;2 en Southwestern Association of Naturalists Food habits of Nyctinomops macrotis at a maternity roost in New Mexico, as indicated by analysis of guano article