I ntroductIon The Antillean fruit-eating bat (Brachyphylla cavernarum Gray 1834, family Phyllostomidae) is found throughout most of the Antillean archipelago, ranging from Barbados to Puerto Rico (Swanepoel and Genoways 1978). This species occupies a variety of habitats, including dry and moist topical forests as well as swamp forests and mangroves (Gannon et al. 2005, ibéné et al. 2007). Baker and Genoways (1978) posited that geographical success of this species to be due to its varied diet. Feeding mainly on fruits, and to a lesser extent, pollen (nellis 1971, nellis and ehle 1977, Gannon et al. 2005), the Antillean fruit-eating bat also consumes insects (Bond and Seaman 1958) in higher proportions compared to other frugivorous bats in the Caribbean (Taboada and Pine 1969). For example, Soto-Centeno et al (2001) noted insect remains in 66% of the fecal pellets they examined. Thus, despite its name, the Antillean fruit-eating bat is an omnivore (Pedersen et al. 2003). However, factors affecting the diversiication of the B. cavernarum diet are still poorly understood. Here we report new data concerning diet variation of the Antillean fruit- eating bat from a colony in Guadeloupe. MaterIals and Methods The study was carried out on the north- eastern side of the volcanic island of Basse- Terre, in the now abandoned Grosse Montagne sugar factory (16°13’54.5”n and 61°39’19”O WGS 84). This old factory is home to a large colony of B. cavernarum (ibéné et al. 2007). Apart from less than a dozen mollossidae, B. cavernarum is the only species roosting in the factory, with a population estimated to number between ive and ten thousand individuals. This important number of bats, present throughout the year, and including offspring strongly suggest a colony associating both males and females. Bats roost in the building north of the factory, which is also the part of the site where they least likely to be disturbed by light. The study area receives an average annual rainfall of 1850 mm and the mean annual temperature is 27°C, conditions which create moderate seasonality. The surrounding areas are dominated by banana and sugar ields or residential developments with widespread exotic plants, while moist tropical forests are found in the riparian zones of valley bottoms. Guano was collected at the beginning of each month from June 2013 to May 2014. Thick plastic sheets were placed on the ground at different locations around the base of the main bat clusters, for a total collection area ranging between 0.9 and 1.2 m 2 . The plastic ilms were replaced monthly. The accumulated guano was collected, then dried to avoiding any sample modiication (e.g. rotting), and inventoried. Guano samples consist of amorphous black 127 Caribbean Journal of Science, Vol. 48, No. 2-3, 127-131, 2014 Copyright 2014 College of Arts and Sciences University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez Seasonal insectivory of the Antillean fruit-eating bat (Brachyphylla cavernarum) Arnaud Lenoble 1,* , Baptiste Angin 2 , Jean-Bernard Huchet 3 , Aurélien Royer 1 1 PACEA – UMR CNRS 5199 – Université de Bordeaux – 33 615 Pessac Cedex 2 Ardops environnement – 97 115 Sainte Rose – Guadeloupe F.W.I. 3 Laboratoire d’Entomologie, Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB) – UMR CNRS 7205 - Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle - 75 005 Paris. *Corresponding author: arnaud.lenoble@u-bordeaux.fr AbstrAct.–This paper reports seasonal variations in the insect component of the Antillean fruit-eating bat (Brachyphylla cavernarum) diet based on the study of guano from a colony on Guadeloupe. Fecal pellet content reveals that insects, mainly phytophagous scarab beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeoidea), can form an important part of Antillean fruit-eating bat feeding patterns, primarily at the beginning of the dry season. Keywords.–Brachyphylla cavernarum, diet, Guadeloupe, guano, Insect consumption by fruit-eating bat, seasonality