Where do flying foxes live? Indian flying fox
Again, I went wherever my eyes wandered around the island of Bali on a motorcycle and found...
These are not bats, these are fruit bats. They are also called flying foxes or flying dogs. They are much larger than bats, their wingspan reaches one and a half meters. The first time I saw them was in , hundreds of silhouettes of Batman logos were flying in the sunset sky. In , we were able to take a closer look at these funny creatures and give them tea and cheesecakes.
Fruit bats live only in the tropics and subtropics; Fruit bats do not live in Russia. Fruit bats are nocturnal and sleep during the day, hanging on tree branches. They live in fairly large colonies. They are on the verge of extinction.
They feed mainly on fruits; some species also eat insects. These flying dogs can pick fruits while flying. During the night, a fruit bat can travel up to one hundred kilometers.
estimate the size
I have turned many of the photos upside down for easier viewing. Upon closer inspection, these fox-winged fruit bats turned out to be cute and funny creatures. They try to lick their fingers all the time, you can pet them and give them some fruit tea. There is a small hole in the lid of the tea bottle.
The fruit bat wrapped himself in his cloakglamorous devil
Flying foxes and flying dogs belong to the order of fruit bats. And although fruit bats are representatives of the order Chiroptera, they are quite different from bats.
First of all, because they lack the same ability for echolocation that mice have. Almost all species of fruit bats navigate in space using vision and touch.
During the daytime, fruit bats, like bats, spend time in trees, under roofs, in caves and other places where they will not be disturbed during daytime sleep.
Flying foxes got their name due to their great similarity to their terrestrial “brothers”. In addition to external similarities, both types of foxes are quite cunning and know how to show ingenuity. And local residents even learned to tame them and keep them in their homes instead of dogs, for protection.
Interesting facts about these unusual animals
- The hind legs are very developed: each has 5 toes with long claws; well adapted for clinging to branches and presenting large fruits at mealtimes. It can hang on one or both legs.
- Body length is about 30 cm. The wingspan reaches 130 cm. Body weight in males is 1300-1600 g, in females about 900 g.
- The smallest representative, the dwarf fruit bat, reaches a length of only 6-7 centimeters. And lives in Burma, Indochina and the Greater Sunda Islands. And the largest - Kalong - reaches as much as 40 centimeters. Such giants live mainly in the Philippine Islands.
- They are not predators, unlike their terrestrial “brothers”. They feed exclusively on fruits and flower pollen.
- They love to misbehave and, for the sake of pleasure, throw bones from trees at passing tourists (not a proven fact).
- They live long enough. The animal was registered at the age of 15 years.
Main habitat: from the Maldives in the Indian Ocean through Pakistan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka to Burma, that is, the entire Hindustan Peninsula. Including
- The Indian flying fox lives in tropical rain forests and swamps, preferring the coast. In the interior of the continent it settles near large bodies of water.
- They can live on the same tree for many years.
- Finding their nests and resting places is very easy: they have a characteristic musky smell.
- During the day, Flying Foxes can be very noisy, especially during mating periods.
- They live in large colonies that can reach up to 1000 individuals.
- The Fox caste is dominated by a strict hierarchy and patriarchy. Adult males have an advantage over young ones. They get the best food and places to rest.
- Ceiba and durian branches are preferred as habitats.
- In one night, in search of food, they can fly as much as 50 km.
- In places where food is poor, the colony divides and completely devours even those trees that are located in hard-to-reach areas.
- Flying foxes cause great damage to gardens and vegetable gardens. They often visit vineyards, choosing sweet, ripe berries. Having had their fill, they rest for a while, digesting their food, then return to their tree.
- Pregnancy in foxes lasts about 150 days. And the female can only bear one cub at a time.
- The mating season occurs between July and October.
- Little flying fox cubs climb onto their mother's chest and fly with her to feeding areas for the first week of life.
- Relationships with a person do not always develop peacefully. Foxes eat up human lands, and humans have learned to consume their meat for food. And in some areas of Pakistan, flying fox fat is used in folk medicine, so it is hunted there very intensively.
- Over the past 50 years, trees on many small islands have been almost completely cleared, causing the extinction of flying foxes.
Flying foxes straighten their legs in flight to stretch their skin membranes.
Flying foxes are known to drink seawater. This way they get minerals.
The flying fox is a good swimmer. You can often watch her swim across the river.
At an air temperature of 37 °C they lick the chest, belly and membranes. The heat transfer of a body moistened with saliva increases.
Foxes pollinate and spread their seeds. This is such an interesting animal in the world. If you don’t believe me, come to the Seychelles and see for yourself!
I found this collage in my friend feed today. I was interested in the top photo. What kind of animal do I think this is and why is it so huge? Let's figure out where the legs (or rather wings) come from, what is true and what is not. Well, except for Batman himself. Here we know for sure... that this is true :-)
Well, who knows about this, can remember, or maybe you missed something.
So, the source for this collage was this photograph
A mysterious and terrible story at the same time takes its roots from. It claims that there is some kind of Enchanted Forest in the Philippines. People (including the author) literally risk their lives to hunt such hefty vampires there.
It is alleged that this is Kalong, aka a flying dog, aka a flying fox, aka a fruit mouse.
Until this moment, without looking closely at the photographs, you are amazed at the size of the monster and the courage of the hunters. It would be better if they didn't post the following photos.
I hope that even with the naked eye you can see that this is “crazy photoshop”. Now if you go back and look at the previous photos, you will immediately notice the clumsy work there too.
Well, thanks at least you made us laugh :-)
Let's find out in more detail what these animals are. By the way, these are not bats as such - they are bats.
Depending on their habitat, fruit bats vary in size and color. The largest of them is the great flying fox or kalong, which lives in the territories of the Malay Peninsula, Indochina, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and the islands nearby.
Fruit bats live only in the tropics and subtropics; Fruit bats do not live in Russia. Fruit bats are nocturnal animals, sleeping during the day hanging on tree branches. They live in fairly large colonies. They are on the verge of extinction.
The size of its body can reach 40 centimeters in length, and its wingspan can reach 1.5-1.7 meters, which is a record among other fruit bats. The body is covered with sparse black fur, the head and neck have a reddish or reddish tint.
These animals received their fox name for two reasons: firstly, their faces are very similar to the faces of these cheats, and, secondly, they, like foxes, completely trust their sensitive hearing when searching for food.
Fruit bats have similar characteristics to bats: they are nocturnal and have broad, leathery, membranous wings. This is probably where all the coincidences end. Unlike mice, flying foxes, including the hero of our article, are vegetarians and, most importantly, do not have echolocation devices. Although cave representatives still have the simplest devices for creating sound signals for orientation in the dark.
They feed mainly on fruits; some species also eat insects. These flying dogs can pick fruits while flying. During the night, a fruit bat can travel up to one hundred kilometers.
Their natural habitat is dense forests. Sometimes kalongs can be found in the mountains, at an altitude of no more than 1300 meters above sea level. They live in large groups and if not disturbed, they can live in one place for many years.
Their main activity occurs at night, but during the day they peacefully settle down for the night or rest, hanging on branches, in hollows or on uneven walls in caves and wrapping themselves in wide wings, like in a blanket. During hot periods, they periodically use their wings as fans, fanning their bodies with them.
During the so-called “hunt”, flying foxes have to use all their dexterity and dexterity. Seeing a delicious fruit in the distance, the fox rushes headlong towards it and tries to pick it right on the fly. But most often a less extreme option is used - the fox hangs on a branch by one leg, and with the other plucks the fruit and puts it in its mouth. Then he crushes it, sucks out all the juice and part of the pulp, and spits out the rest.
The breeding season for kalongs begins in March-April. The duration of pregnancy ranges from 4.5 to 7 months. The first time after birth, females carry the cubs with them, but when they grow a little, they leave them on a branch and go in search of food. After 2-3 months, the cubs become more or less independent.
Flying foxes bring both benefit and harm. The first includes the spread of plant seeds, and the second includes damage to fruit plantations.
Not long ago, the great flying fox was listed in the IUCN Red List, but now it is already considered a stable species and is not currently in danger of extinction.
In some photographs, fruit bats probably seem huge to you. But this is again a shooting angle. Let me remind you once again - some representatives of this suborder are quite large, others are quite tiny. Suffice it to say that their weight ranges from 15 grams to 1 kilogram. The wingspan of a flying fox, for example, reaches more than one and a half meters (170 cm), and a flying dog - a little less. The heads of these animals - elongated muzzles with pointed ears and large eyes - are indeed very similar to those of dogs and foxes. Fruit bats are crepuscular and nocturnal, but some of them, such as the palm bat, are active even during the day.
Flying foxes and dogs do not live up to their “predatory” name, since they are frugivores: they feed on ripe fruits of * mangoes and baobabs, bananas and oranges, papayas and dates; They feast on flowers and eat the tender growth of some trees. The specific name of palm and flower fruit bats indicates the food tastes of these animals.
Fruit bats do not have permanent shelters. They often fly in fairly large flocks from one place to another, sometimes ten or more kilometers, looking for fruit plantations where the fruits are already ripe. In one night, the route of a flying fox in search of food can reach 100 kilometers. Fruit bats search for their food using vision and a highly developed sense of smell.
It is interesting to watch how a fruit bat, clinging to a branch with one paw, picks off a fragrant, juicy mango with the other and stuffs it into its mouth. Crushing it, he. squeezes out and drinks the juice, then, having eaten the pulp, throws away the rest and moves on to the next one. Sometimes, with amazing dexterity, the fruit bat plucks a ripe fruit right on the fly and carries it away in its mouth. In some places, fruit bats become a scourge for gardening: they raid orchards in the evenings, devastating them. The local population considers the meat of these animals edible and even tasty.
The fruit bats spend the day in the crowns of tall, mighty trees. They hang in hundreds, and sometimes thousands, like heavy dark fruits, clinging to twigs and branches. Due to overload, branches sometimes break, and the animals fly screaming to other trees. Eyewitnesses report that during the day, palm fruit bats constantly quarrel and squeal loudly, sometimes even drowning out the noise of street traffic.
The lifespan of fruit bats is quite long. There is a known case where a flying dog lived in the London Zoo for more than 17 years.
Despite the dubious “notes” in the Latin name of this representative of the fruit bat family, the kalong is a very cute animal that feeds exclusively on fruit pulp and flowers.
Depending on their habitat, fruit bats vary in size and color. The largest of them is the great flying fox or kalong, which lives in the territories of the Malay Peninsula, Indochina, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and the islands nearby.
The size of its body can reach 40 centimeters in length, and its wingspan can reach 1.5-1.7 meters, which is a record among other fruit bats. The body is covered with sparse black fur, the head and neck have a reddish or reddish tint.
These animals received their fox name for two reasons: firstly, their faces are very similar to the faces of these cheats, and, secondly, they, like foxes, completely trust their sensitive hearing when searching for food.
Fruit bats have similar features to: they are nocturnal and have wide, leathery, membranous wings. This is probably where all the coincidences end. Unlike mice, flying foxes, including the hero of our article, are vegetarians and, most importantly, do not have echolocation devices. Although cave representatives still have the simplest devices for creating sound signals for orientation in the dark.
Their natural habitat is dense forests. Sometimes kalongs can be found in the mountains, at an altitude of no more than 1300 meters above sea level. They live in large groups and if not disturbed, they can live in one place for many years.
Their main activity occurs at night, but during the day they peacefully settle down for the night or rest, hanging on branches, in hollows or on uneven walls in caves and wrapping themselves in wide wings, like in a blanket. During hot periods, they periodically use their wings as fans, fanning their bodies with them.
During the so-called “hunt”, flying foxes have to use all their dexterity and dexterity. Seeing a delicious fruit in the distance, the fox rushes headlong towards it and tries to pick it right on the fly. But most often a less extreme option is used - the fox hangs on a branch by one leg, and with the other plucks the fruit and puts it in its mouth. Then he crushes it, sucks out all the juice and part of the pulp, and spits out the rest.
The breeding season for kalongs begins in March-April. The duration of pregnancy ranges from 4.5 to 7 months. The first time after birth, females carry the cubs with them, but when they grow a little, they leave them on a branch and go in search of food. After 2-3 months, the cubs become more or less independent.
Flying foxes bring both benefit and harm. The first includes the spread of plant seeds, and the second includes damage to fruit plantations.
Not long ago, the great flying fox was listed in the IUCN Red List, but now it is already considered a stable species and is not currently in danger of extinction.
The Australian flying fox (lat. Pteropus scapulatus) belongs to the fruit bat family (Pteropotidae). It is the smallest representative of the genus Pteropus on the Australian continent. In size, it is inferior to the black fruit (P. alecto), spectacled (P. conspicillatus) and gray-headed flying foxes (P. poliocephalus), common in Australia.
Australians consider it an agricultural pest and fight it in a variety of ways. This chiropteran mammal is capable of causing significant damage to farmers, destroying the harvest of fruit trees and berry bushes. In the past, farmers suffering losses were forced to organize mass hunts for them and poison them.
Nowadays morals have become softer, so they often use protective nets and wire with electric current. Despite all their tricks, the number of the species is practically not decreasing. Clever fruit bats have learned to carry out guerrilla raids on farmers' gardens and never stay in one place for long.
Spreading
The habitat covers the northern and eastern regions of Australia. Animals stay close to the coast, but often fly 200-300 km deep into the continent in search of food. The greatest number of them is observed in the north of the country.
They have also been spotted in Papua New Guinea and New Zealand. There are quite a lot of them on the islands located off the coast of Australia. They are able to live not only in tropical, subtropical and temperate climates, but also migrate through arid zones of deserts and semi-deserts.
Preference is given to sclerophyllous eucalyptus forests with an undergrowth of acacia (Acacia) and casuarina (Casuarina), mangrove and bamboo thickets.
Fruit bats love lowlands and are relatively rare at altitudes up to 300 m.
The area of their habitat exceeds 3.5 million square meters. km. Mass migrations to the south during the hot summer occur from October to April.
Behavior
Australian flying foxes lead a nomadic lifestyle, sometimes gathering in huge colonies of up to 1 million individuals. Such huge hordes are relatively rare; animals usually move in scattered groups of 20-40 eaters.
During the day they cover distances of up to 80 km. During the period of harvest ripening, up to several thousand bats can simultaneously fatten on one plantation.
The basis of the diet is not fruits and berries, but pollen and nectar of flowering eucalyptus trees (Eucalypteae). Flowers and young shoots of various plants are eaten to a much lesser extent. At times the vegetarian menu is supplemented with insects. Raids on orchards are carried out mainly during the period of lack of food.
The animals spend the night in large groups, huddled closely together. Their accumulation can be so large that branches break off under their weight.
Flying foxes do not use echolocation, relying entirely on their vision and sense of smell when searching for food. They communicate with each other using a rich set of sounds, postures and facial expressions.
Unlike many other chiropteran mammals, the Australian flying fox is an excellent poison dart frog. The structure of its fingers and legs allows it to move very quickly along branches and tree trunks.
To reduce wind resistance, fruit bats fly low to the ground. Their flight becomes especially low at dawn, when they return to rest after a night's feeding. Flying over the surface of reservoirs, they often end up as lunch for crocodiles.
Reproduction
The mating season runs from November to December, when spring ends and summer begins in Australia. Animals form colonies of several tens and hundreds of thousands of individuals.
Males occupy small areas and create harems of 2-5 females.
Fertilized females gather in separate small groups, remaining in them until the offspring appear in April and May. After this, the groups break up.
The female gives birth to only one young. It clings to the mother's fur with its paws and remains hanging on the chest for 4-6 weeks. Then the baby remains in the colony on his own while the mother flies off to feed. The mother recognizes her offspring by his squeak. Each one is unique, so finding a baby among thousands of others is not particularly difficult for her.
After 2 months, the strengthened young fruit bats are already flying independently around the trees in the colony. At about five months of age, milk feeding stops and they begin to live independently. Sexual maturity occurs at 18-24 months.
Description
The body length of adult individuals is 24-26 cm, the wingspan is 90-120 cm. Weight ranges from 280 to 530 g. Males are larger and heavier than females.
The body is covered with short soft fur. Color varies from light brown to dark brown with a characteristic reddish tint. The wings are reddish-brown and appear almost transparent in flight. There is often a gray spot on the head.
The muzzle is elongated, the eyes are large. The ears are round in shape and covered in front with sparse hair.
The lifespan of Australian flying foxes in the wild is about 15 years. In captivity, with good care, some of them live up to 30 years.