Good news for flying fox conservation! In conjunction with recent media coverage highlighting the importance of flying foxes for durian, Peninsular Malaysia’s Department of Wildlife and National Parks have announced that they are taking concrete steps to protect the country’s two flying fox species. The Director-General of the department announced that both Pteropus hypomelanus and P. vampyrus will be moved to the ‘Totally Protected’ category under the Wildlife Conservation Act 2010. This means that people will no longer be allowed to hunt either species. This is a long-awaited and much welcome move that bat biologists and conservationists have been advocating for years, and we are very pleased that the Malaysian government is taking a step in the right direction to support bat conservation efforts. You can read the news report here: ‘Flying foxes to be upgraded to “totally protected” species’
Soon to be a thing of the past.. dead Pteropus vampyrus shot by a licensed hunter in Peninsular Malaysia.
Recent research has demonstrated the importance of Island Flying Foxes for durian pollination. Here a bat can be seen at the cluster of durian flowers
