(also called flying foxes/fruit bats)

To find out more about the Rescue, Rehabilitation and Release of Megabats - See Issue 3 - Out NOW!!
BONUS - Worming of Flying Fox Pups - Click HERE


What is a bat?

A bat is a flying mammal, not a bird. Bats are the only flying mammal.

How many different types of bats are there?

There are over 1000 species of bats in the world belonging to the Order Chiroptera (which means ‘hand winged’). These can be divided into 2 suborders:

• The Megabats (Megachiroptera) of which there are about 170 species. These larger bats feed on nectar, pollen and fruit (flying-foxes and fruit bats belong to this group).
  
  
• Microbats (Microchiroptera) which make up the majority of bat species. These smaller bats are usually insect-eating, carnivorous bats.
  
  

One quarter of all mammal species in the world are bats.

In Australia there are over 90 species - both Microbats and Megabats.

Flying-foxes (also called fruit bats) are members of a large group of mammals called BATS.  There are microbats and megabats.  Bats are the only group of mammals capable of sustained flight.

There are four recognized species of megabats(also know as Flying Foxes and Fruit bats) on mainland Australia:  The Little Red, Grey-headed, Black and Spectacled Flying-foxes.  They have a very keen sense of smell and good eyesight, both of which are needed to locate their food during the night.  Microbats use echolocation – a bit like hearing with pictures, they still use their eyes to see too. Flying foxes and microbats are protected native Australian species, it is illegal to cause them harm.  Flying-foxes are usually found in coastal areas of melaleuca and casuarina swamps, mangroves, heath, dry and wet eucalypt forests, woodlands and rainforests.  The little red flying fox can also be found further inland in arid and semi-arid areas. Flying-foxes all over Australia are increasingly on the move searching for new or existing food resources – their favorite foods, nectar and pollen from our native trees and plants. Do bats have a pouch? No, bats do not have a pouch. Only marsupial mammals have a pouch. Bats are eutherian (placental) mammals; their babies are born fully developed and are nourished on their mother’s milk – just like humans.

What is special about a bat’s wing? The wings of bats are made of two thin layers of almost hairless, soft, strong, elastic skin which stretches between very elongated finger bones and joins the side of the body from the arm to the ankle. In microbats the membrane extends between the legs and includes the tail. These wings contain blood vessels and nerves. They stretch easily for flight yet contract when not in use. Different bat species have different wing shapes depending on where and how they catch their food.

How big are bats? Bats vary in weight from a few grams for the smallest bats to the largest flying-foxes which weigh over one kilogram. The smallest bat species have a wingspan of about 20 millimetres while the largest reach almost 2 metres.




Why do bats hang upside-down? Bats hang by their feet with their head down because it is energy efficient. No energy is required to hang compared with defying gravity and standing upright. In order to reduce as much weight as possible for flight, the bones and muscles of the legs are very light weight compared with those of a non-flying mammal of comparable size. The biggest bones and muscles are those used for flying.

Can bats swim? Yes, they row themselves with their wings. Bats do not go swimming by choice.

Are bats blind? No. All bats have eyes and can see.