Vig Károly: Zoological Research in Western Hungary. A history (Szombathely, 2003)

Phylum Vertebrata 227 Szombathely, although the list also includes 'domestic mammals'. The British naturalist S. GERRIT MILLER (1908) described a subspecies of mountain hare, Lepus timidus varronis, from Léka (Lockenhaus). LAJOS MÉHELY (1902) wrote of the occurrence of mountain hare in Western Hungary, 'I think the two Vas County specimens I saw in July 1901 at Léka Castle, in the collection of Count Miklós Esterházy, belong to that species, but I was not able to examine them closely.' FERENC MÉSZÁROS and ANDRÁS DEMETER have been collecting small mammals in the Kőszeg Hills since 1981. While trapping on August 10-11, 1983 near Stájerházak, they caught an Alpine shrew (Sorex alpinus)

—the first specimen found within the present-day borders of Hungary (MÉSZÁROS and DEMETER 1987). Its morphological characteristics show a similarity with the dimensions found in Austrian populations.

122 Several other specimens were found later, which allowed their endoparasites to be examined (MÉSZÁROS and MURAI 1983). The bat fauna of the Kőszeg Hills was examined on August 12-18, 1996 at a camp organized by the Hungarian Bat Research Society. Nets were used to gather specimens at three sites (Bozsok: Végh Wood, Velem: Borha Spring, and Kőszeg: Hétvezér Spring). The species observed were the noctule (Nyctalus nocturia), Daubenton's bat (Myotis daubentonii), the whiskered bat (M. mystacinus), Bechstein's bat (M. bechsteinii), Natterer's bat (M. nattereri), the serotine (Eptesicus serotinus), the long-eared bat (Plecotus auritus), the brown long-eared bat (P. austriacus) and the barbastelle (Barbastella barbastellus). The results point to a very rich bat fauna in the Kőszeg Hills (FEHÉR 1996). The house-dwelling bats seen most commonly in towns are noctules (Nyctalus noctula) and greater mouseeared bats (Myotis myotis). In Szombathely, about 250 noctules were rescued from the premises of a bank, of which 97 could be released after successful hibernation (PÁLMAI and DANKOVICS 2000). One example of Kuhl's pipistrelle (Pipistrellus kuhlii) appeared in the centre of Szombathely in June 2002. Very few occurrence data for this warmthloving species are known in Hungary. They include Nagyrákos (see later) and Sopron in the West Hungarian border region (PÁLMAI and DANKOVICS 2002). The presence of striped field mice (Apodemus agrárius) was noted at Győrvár, Vas County, in 19 8 7 by LÁSZLÓ VARGA and ATTILA JÁNOSA, who caught one in a trap in 1988 (VARGA 1991). The same work also includes distribution data on other mammal species: fat dormouse (Myoxus glis), stoats (Mustela erminea), pine martens (Maries martes), otters (Lutra lutra), badgers (Mêles meles), and several species of bat. Occurrences of common dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius) at a nesting colony at Tömörd were recorded by ZOLTÁN LEPOLD (2001). LÁSZLÓ ENDRŐDI (1988) examined the prospects of plant-protection forecasting of common voles (Microtus arvalis) in papilionaceous crops, along with stocks, as well as winter and endwinter activity, around Tanakajd, Pecöl, Rum, Vashosszüfalu and Jánosháza in 122 SPITZENBERGER, F. 1978. Die Alpenspitzmaus (Sorex alpinus Schnitz). In Mammalia austriaca I. (Mammalia Insectivora, Soricidae). Mitteilungen der Abteilung für Zoologie des Landesmuseums Joanneum 7:145-62.