Mention the word ‘bats’ and many people snort in disgust and complain about their cars and driveways being used for target practice. Mention that you actually rear and rehabilitate these critters and you’re labelled as “weird”! Why would anyone want to have one in the house?

Many baby flying-foxes (also commonly called "fruit bats") are orphaned during birthing season (October/November), and many adult flying-foxes suffer shocking injuries or death entangled in barbed wire, fruit tree netting, cocos palms or electrocuted on powerlines at other times of the year. Kind-hearted volunteers throughout Queensland and NSW spend their own time and money helping orphaned and injured bats, and providing a free rescue service to their local community.

Flying-fox orphans are bottle fed five times a day, and can go through the same teething, constipation and dummy-spitting phases that human babies do. But no carer can hide their pride and delight when after weeks of hanging on the clothes airer flapping, the baby finally takes off for its first flight – usually crash landing nearby in an undignified heap. By the end of January the orphan joins others in “creche” to dehumanise and improve flying skills before release, leaving their bereft carers to pack away the Milton and Napisan and chip off fruity stalactites from the clothes airers ready for the next orphan season.

So why does anyone bother with all this? Simply because these widely misunderstood native animals are in decline and every single flying-fox that can be rehabilitated and returned to the wild contributes to vital pollination and seed dispersal of our bushland.

There are also approximately 63 species of microbat found in Australia. These tiny insectivorous bats rely on echolocation to navigate and locate food. Each bat can consume thousands of insects in one night. Microbats live in a range of habitats including tree hollows, caves, roofs and walls of houses.

COMMON BACKYARD HAZARDS TO FLYING-FOXES

Did you know that cocos palms (Syagrus romanzoffiana) can kill bats in 6 different ways?

* Poisoning when seeds are eaten green in times of hunger (September to January)
* Sticky fruits can cause severe constipation causing dehydration and death in young animals
* Toes caught in flower sheath causing self mutilation and death
* Whole body or body parts caught in leaves that are easily shredded by claws creating a "cocoon" effect around the animal causing stress and death if not physically removed. See photos above of entanglement
* Juvenile animals can get seeds caught at the back of their 'dog like' incisor teeth causing a slow death from starvation
* Premature wearing of teeth due to the hard seed. Flying-Foxes have been known to live for 30 yrs in captivity but wild animals who appear young are now presenting with worn, missing or even no teeth.

FRUIT TREE NETTING ENTANGLEMENT:
Fruit tree netting thrown loosely over a fruiting tree is a dangerous trap for all wildlife, especially bats as they get tangled very quickly. Once caught, they can suffer cruel and extensive injuries, even death, depending on how long and how badly the bat has been entangled. As inappropriate (plastic monofilament) netting becomes more readily available via suburban hardware stores to backyard growers, the danger to hungry wildlife is becoming a major threat to their survival if people do not check their nets daily or erect them properly.

There are alternatives to using netting to protect fruit trees, but if you must use netting it is important that light coloured (more visible at night) netting is stretched taught - preferably over a frame - and NOT draped over the tree in loose folds.

If you find an injured bat, or one that is on the ground or hanging alone by itself during the day do not touch it, and keep children and domestic pets away. A very small percentage of bats can carry the Australian Bat Lyssavirus (a rabies related virus) which can only be transmitted to humans through a bite or deep scratch. Any wild animal that is injured or frightened can be defensive so it is essential that you seek the help of a specialised wildlife service who have trained and vaccinated rescuers available.

If you find a bat in distress, or would like more information about bats, are interested in becoming a bat carer yourself (and don’t mind being labelled as ‘weird’), or want to find out about alternative fruit tree protection methods, contact your local wildlife group or Parks & Wildlife Office. More information is also available on our website: www.batrescue.org.au.

Bat Rescue Gold Coast – Helpline (07) 3321 1230 or 0417 976 711

Bat Rescue Sunshine Coast – Helpline (07) 3321 3169 or 0402 865 035

About the Author:
Vicki Bressan is a licensed wildlife carer based on the Gold Coast, and Branch Co-Ordinator of Bat Rescue Inc. a volunteer group specialising in bats which has membership across SEQ down to the NSW border.