Bats at the Black Swamp this Halloween!

Celebrate Halloween with an evening of fun and fascination at the Black Swamp! Bat Care Brisbane will host a sausage sizzle. Bring the kids along – there will be masks and wings to make and wear and fun activities. Learn about the amazing lifestyles of bats, and watch as they venture out on their nightly feeding foray. Have a close encounter with micro-bats, who are making impressive in-roads in our fight against mozzies. Some carers will bring along a baby or two. Where: The Black Swamp, Haggup Street end, Cleveland When: 4 – 7.30pm, Saturday 31 October Bring: Closed shoes, a chair/blanket, mosquito repellent RSVP: 0488 228 134 or info@bats.org.au by 29 October

Press Release: Hendra media sparks fear and retribution

Bat Care Brisbane (BCB) has received disturbing information that the flying-fox colonies located around Mackay and Rockhampton are being threatened with destruction by people who are fearful about the spread of Hendra virus from bats.

BCB is alarmed at recent media reports about Hendra virus which may lead to people acting irresponsibly causing unnecessary harm to bats. The media throughout Qld could be improved by including some balanced conservation messages.

It is now critical that some factual information about the importance of bats be relayed to the public. This includes: › Continue reading

The Bat Care Brisbane Online Store Is Now Open!

Show your support and educate others about the important ecological role bats play in our environment! Men’s, women’s and baby’s clothing with the ‘No Me No Tree’ slogan are currently available. We also have organic cotton versions as well as an assortment of accessories. Check back regularly as there are more designs coming soon… Click here to visit our new store

Please Report Flying-Fox Electrocutions

The vast majority of bats found electrocuted on powerlines are mothers carrying their babies. Adult victims rarely survive their injuries – 99.9% mortality rate. Please check for baby animals, during the months of October to January. What you can do: – Quickly report electrocutions with: type of wildlife, pole number OR house number, street and suburb – Report animals quickly so other animals are not also drawn to their death – Look for and report any live babies – Support underground electrical cables – Report areas which regularly kill wildlife in overhead wiring More information about bat electrocution can be found by clicking here

Bat Care Brisbane Now On Twitter!

Now you can keep up to date with all the latest Bat Care Brisbane news via Twitter! Visit our page here and start following us today! http://twitter.com/BatCareBrisbane

Input Needed: Recovery Plans for Vulnerable Flying-Foxes

We need public interest in our disappearing flying-foxes!

Eight years since the grey-headed flying-fox was listed nationally as a vulnerable species the draft national recovery plans for the Grey-Headed Flying-fox and the Spectacled Flying-fox have been released by Commonwealth Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts. The draft National Recovery Plans are out now for comment until the 4th of January 2010. The draft plans can be downloaded from these links: Grey-Headed Flying-Fox – Recovery Plan, Spectacled Flying-Fox – Recovery Plan . Hard copies are availabe from the Department’s Community Information Unit, Email: ciu@environment.gov.au Freecall: 1800 803 772
› Continue reading

Another Barbed-Wire Tragedy

Yet another horrific accident has occurred due to the use of barbed-wire and sadly it won’t be the last. Unfortunately this is only one of many barbed-wire fences spanning water ways in the greater Brisbane area.

Of the two Grey-headed Flying-foxes found entangled the one that didn’t survive was heavily pregnant with twins and died agonizingly by drowning.

If you do have barbed-wire fencing that cannot be replaced please make it visible to wildlife at night by using bright tape, flags or CD’s .

Thank you to the lovely locals who helped access the bats, it would have been very difficult otherwise.

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Visit Wildlife Friendly Fencing

Brisbane Bat Chatter, 8th Edition (Sept-Nov ‘09)

Click here to download the latest edition of the popular, Brisbane Bat Chatter newsletter (PDF, 372 KB)

Some of the hot topics this edition:

- 2009 Annual General Meeting

- Member Profile

- Presidents Report

- Review of the new “Bat Max”

- Christmas Party & Upcoming Events

- and lots more…

Flying-Foxes, Horses & Hendra, Horsing Around With Reality

With the death of another person from Hendra virus infection the media are again promulgating superstitions and uncritically reporting that flying-foxes are responsible for spreading Hendra virus to horses and humans.

The reports that more viruses are being found in bats have not helped either. While it is true that many new viruses have been found in bats around the world in recent years, it remains unknown whether these viruses are all harmful to man. Also, the fact that similar extensive searches performed in other groups of mammals (for example rodents) have similarly led to discovery of potentially harmful viruses, such as Hantavirus, has not been mentioned.

Read the complete article here – ‘Flying-Foxes, Horses & Hendra‘

Australian Geographic Cover Features Flying-Foxes!

 

Photographer and supporter of Bat Care Brisbane, Vivien Jones, has her amazing work featured on the cover of Australian Geographic.

 

She has specialized in flying foxes for more than twenty years, aiming to show “everything they do”, she says. [SOURCE ]

 

Her work offers a rare glimpse into the incredible world of the Grey-headed flying-fox throughout the feature article. Also highlighting the tragic plight that these animals are facing due to the NSW Governments refusal to follow the lead of other states and ban the shooting of the endangered Grey-headed flying-fox.

 

View more of Vivien’s photography

Nature's Unappreciated Mosquito Busters

By encouraging Microbats into our backyards with artificial roost boxes we can enjoy the benefit of natural, chemical free mosquito and pest control.

 

A single Microbat can catch 1,200 mosquitos and small insects in just 1 hour!

For more information about bat boxes or to become a carer visit our Microbats and Membership pages.

 

If you find a sick or injured bat call the 24hr Rescue Hotline: 0488 228 134

( ** Never handle a bat unless you are a vaccinated and trained carer ** )

 

Article excerpt from the Bay Island Times (July), written by Kat Gawlik

Download the article (PDF, 272KB)

Christmas Island Pipistrelle Rescue

The Australian Government will invest $1.5 million to begin the rescue of Christmas Island’s ecosystem. 

Including a mission to capture the last remaining Pipistrelle bats for captive breeding. The Christmas Island Pipistrelle (Pipistrellus murrayi ) is found only on Christmas Island, Australia. It is a small bat weighing around 3 to 4.5 grams.

 

“Volunteers and help from the Australasian Bat Society will be invaluable in this capture effort.” “My top priority now is to prevent any further extinctions and to restore the island’s environmental health,” Mr Garrett said .

Parks Australia will work in partnership with Australian zoos on a captive breeding program, should the capture attempt be successful.