Black Flying-fox Colony in Redwood Park

It's not their fault they don't have feathers! Doesn't make them any less interesting. And just like the birds, it's good to know what species are about locally at any given time.

There's expertise within the club and beyond on most aspects of our local fauna. Let's tap into it.
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Rod Hobson
Posts: 509
Joined: Thu Jan 19, 2006 8:03 am

Black Flying-fox Colony in Redwood Park

Post by Rod Hobson »

Folks,

This morning I finally got my act together and went for a look at a flying-fox colony recently established in Redwood Park on the range escarpment below Toowoomba, SEQ. I have had reports from a couple of sources over the last month about this colony. Today I saw about 200 squabbling individuals of the Black Flying-fox (Pteropus alecto) in residence there. They're in quite dense dry vine scrub on the northern side of Gatton Creek. I'm not sure of the exact number present, as I didn't want to penetrate too deeply into the camp for fear of disturbing them unnecessarily.

I really like this bat and especially its classical specific epithet. Alecto (constant anger) along with Tisiphone (avenger of murder) and Megaera (the jealous) were the Furies, the three godesses of vengeance of Greek mythology hence the inference to the frequent squabbling or 'constant anger' of this bat ; a trait also shared by other flying-fox species.

Regards,
Rod Hobson
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