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Grey-headed Flying Foxes

Family: PteropodidaeGrey-headed Flying Fox. Photo by Sonja Elwood.
Scientific name: Pteropus poliocephalus

Flying foxes may appear to be plentiful but their survival is not assured. Their total population has been observed to drop by one third in just ten years. Since 2001 the Federal, NSW and Victorian governments have listed this species as vulnerable. This alarming decline is caused by human activities, particularly land clearing for agriculture and urban growth, and shooting.

Flying Fox Species and Distribution

Although three species of flying fox are known in NSW, the Grey-headed Flying-fox, the Black Flying Fox and the Little Red Flying Fox, to-date it is only the Grey-headed Flying-fox that has been sighted within Pittwater LGA. All three species are protected under NSW legislation with the Grey-headed Flying-fox also protected by national legislation.

Grey-head Flying-foxes range throughout eastern Australia from Rockhampton (QLD) in the north to Geelong (VIC) in the south. Flying foxes are nomadic moving from camp site to camp site in line with available food resources. The Grey-headed Flying-fox population is considered a single population. One animal sighted in Pittwater today may be the same animal seen in Queensland tomorrow.  

In more recent times Grey-headed Flying-fox has been identified in a number of new camp sites throughout the southern and south-eastern limits of their range. This is also thought to be due to the lack of food resources in the north.

In Pittwater, there are two camp sites for the Grey-headed flying fox. They are located in Cannes Reserve, Avalon and Warriewood Wetlands.

Ecology

Flying fox Mother and Pup

The Grey-headed Flying-fox is the largest Australian bat, with a body length of 23-29cm. It has dark grey fur on the body, lighter grey fur on the head and a russet collar encircling the neck. The wing membranes are black and the wingspan can be up to 1 m. It can be distinguished from other flying-foxes by the leg fur, which extends to the ankle. 

They occur in subtropical and temperate forests, tall sclerophyll forests, woodlands and swamps as well as in urban gardens and fruit crops. Roosting camps are generally located within 20km of a regular food souce and are commonly found in gullies, close to water and in vegetation with a dense canopy. Individual camps may have tens of thousands of animals and are used for mating, birth and the rearing of young. Annual mating commences in January and a single young is born each October or November.

 

Site fidelity to camps is high with some camps known to have been in use for over a century. Flying-foxes may travel up to 50km per night foraging for food. They feed on the nectar and pollens of native trees especially Eucalyptus, Melaleuca, and Banksia and on the fruits of rainforests trees and vines. They are also known to forage in cultivated gardens and also on fruiting crops, making them a pest to some sections of the agricultural industry.

The Grey-head Flying-fox provide vital ecological services in terms of pollination and seed dispersal of many species of native plants. They are known to disperse the seeds of at least 40 Australian rainforest trees (including figs, palms and lilly pillies) and are pollen vectors for more than 50 species in the Myrtacae and Proteaceae families.

Reasons for decline

The Grey-headed Flying Fox is affected by a number of threatening processes, the most serious of which is loss of foraging and roosting habitat.

Habitat loss

The complexity of the habitat requirements of the Grey-headed Flying Fox, particularly its requirement for multiple, geographically dispersed populations of food trees, leaves the species vulnerable to population decline as poor land use decisions and management strategies take place. Annually reliable winter resources are limited in distribution to a narrow coastal strip in northern New South Wales and Queensland, and primarily occur on freehold land. These coastal areas are targeted for intensive residential development.

Exploitation

The Grey-headed Flying Fox destroys commercial fruit in Queensland and New South Wales. Direct killing of animals on orchards and harassment and destruction of roosts has almost certainly played a role in the species’ decline. The exact number of animals destroyed is unknown, but estimates as high as 100,000 annually have been made.

Pollutants and pathogens

Some urban-dwelling flying foxes accumulate lethal levels of lead from the environment and are also prone to electrocution.

Recovery objectives

  • Stabilise the population at its current level.
  • Define patterns of landscape use, and identify and protect essential habitat.
  • Develop non-destructive methods for crop protection.
  • Develop non-destructive methods for management of camps in problem areas
  • Ensure consistent management of the species across all range states (Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria).

Health considerations:

  • It is unwise for members of the public to handle bats, or any wildlife. Australian Bat Lyssavirus is rare but may be transmitted by a bite or scratch from an infected bat, including a flying-fox. If a person is bitten or scratched they should wash the wound with soap and water for five minutes and seek medical advice.
    NB  If you find an injured flying fox contact WIRES on 1300 094 737
  • Living close to a camp or having flying-foxes in your garden is not considered a health risk.
  • The smell of flying-foxes is not a health alert - it does not come from droppings, but is the personal scent of the animals, particularly the males advertising themselves.

Documents & Links

Further Information

Contacts

  • DECCW Head Office 9995 5000
  • Department of Health, Public Health Unit Hornsby Office 9477 9400
  • Pittwater Council 9970 1365

Updated: 05 Dec 2011