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High resolution terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) within the Simud Hitam cave, Gomantong, has proven successful at discriminating the nests of black-nest swiftlets from roosting bats in high, inaccessible locations. TLS data was imported into ArcGIS software, allowing for semi-automated counting of nests. Spatial analysis of nest locations has established a maximum packing density of 268 nests/m2 in optimum locations, which correspond to roof slopes of >20 degrees. Rhinolophid bats roost adjacent to, but not within nest locations, preferring roof surfaces close to horizontal.
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McFarlane et al. (2015) studied this question.
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