Flying Foxes

Every few days for the past month I have had injured bats bought to me after they were caught on a barbed wire fence. Mostly in the past they have been little black flying foxes but lately they have mostly been little reds.

Barb wire is very dangerous to flying foxes. Unlike smaller bats flying foxes (also called fruit bats) don’t use Echolocation to “see” things in the dark. They use their eyes so sometimes they get caught up after trying to fly through a barb wire fence.

When the poor bats are brought into me they are exhausted and terrified. Often they have been dangling on the fence for days. Their wings are ripped and torn. More importantly they often severely damage their mouth trying to bite themselves free; sometimes they have snapped wing or leg bones in the process of trying to escape.

While Fruit bats are generally not very popular I love them. They are very cute and even when they are terrified and in pain they are still usually very gentle. They are exceptionally smart and it usually doesn’t take them long to work out your trying to help them. They have even held out a sore wing themselves for me to look at more closely.

Bats unfortunately do carry some nasty viruses. So it is important to not handle them unless you have been vaccinated to protect your self. If you find a bat caught up in a barb wire fence call wildlife rescue (Part of parks and wildlife) who will send somebody to release the bat who (like me) has been vaccinated to protect themselves against getting the deadly lyssa virus. If you do choose to rescue one your self be gentle and careful and wear leather gloves and then you might not get bitten or scratched. If you do get bitten or scratched seek medical attention immediately to get your self protected. Some local councils in Queensland have banned the use of barbwire not because they were worried about the bats but because they were worried about their potential rescuers.