Cecilia A. Sanchez (1), Terry B. Reardon (2), Wayne S.J. Boardman (3), and Sonia Altizer (1)
(1) Odum School of Ecology, University of Georgia (2) South Australian Museum, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia (3) University of South Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
Flying-fox species occur across a large geographical area of eastern Australia, but their seasonal distribution is dictated by the unpredictable availability of their preferred diet, especially eucalypt blossoms. Recently, human activities, including destruction of native habitat and planting of non-native vegetation that provides predictable foraging, have altered the distribution and foraging patterns of some flying-fox species. The consequences of this change are important for both bat and human health, given that bats harbor viruses that are transmissible to humans. In 2010, a group of grey-headed flying-foxes (Pteropus poliocephalus) established a permanent roost in Adelaide, South Australia, several hundred kilometers outside their previously established range. We deployed lightweight GPS loggers on five P. poliocephalus to track their foraging movements. Loggers were programmed to record a bat’s position every 30 seconds when flying and every 45 minutes when stationary, and also recorded data on acceleration, speed, and altitude. Deployments ranged from 7-12 days and resulted in 47 nights of movement data and 83000 GPS fixes. Two flying-foxes flew along a nearby river each night and fed at patches within 10 km of the roost. The other three flying-foxes foraged widely over the landscape, feeding at multiple, more distant sites. Factors that may affect foraging movement, such as weather and bat sex, age, and body condition, will be discussed. This work provides insight into a recently-established, understudied bat population and is useful both to local Adelaide stakeholders as well as other urban citizens seeking to manage the bats that share their space.