A dry winter has choked the supply of native blossoms and nectar that grey-headed flying foxes rely on, triggering a starvation event across colonies around Sydney. Greater Sydney Parklands, the agency managing Centennial Parklands, Parramatta Park and Western Sydney Parklands, has warned park goers not to handle distressed bats.
"We want to remind park goers that if they see a distressed bat they should never handle it because they can scratch and bite," the agency’s environmental and sustainability officer Amara Glynn said. Sightings should be reported to WIRES or Sydney Wildlife Rescue.
"Carers who are trained and prepared can come and tend to these bats," Glynn said.
The largest colony in the city is at Lachlan Swamp in Centennial Parklands, home to more than 40,000 bats. Parramatta Park hosts between 5000 and 10,000, while in the south-west suburb of Harrington Park roughly 50,000 bats colonised Narellan Creek in June.
WIRES warned earlier in October that the starvation event was driving unusual behaviour including bats eating off the ground and hanging too low in trees. Rescues and deaths have increased.
When temperatures exceed 42 degrees, colonies are at severe risk of heat stress. "We will be closing our colony sites to the public when this happens," Glynn said.
Despite the current crisis, grey-headed flying foxes are vital ecosystem engineers. Research estimates the species plants about 91 million trees each year by dispersing seeds and pollinating flowers, contributing close to $1 billion to the nation’s timber industry.