WIRES urges caution as hungry flying foxes move in search of food

With a relatively dry winter and shifting habitat conditions across the state, Wildlife Information, Rescue and Education Service (WIRES) has reported a starvation event for native flying foxes across large regions of NSW, particularly along the coast. With poor quality and quantity of nectar in flowering gums and native plants, WIRES has highlighted their carers have received an increase in reports of malnourished grey-headed flying foxes and seriously premature pups. Flying foxes generally feed on the nectar and pollen of native trees, and fruits of rainforest trees and vines, while in more urban environments forage in cultivated gardens and fruit crops. WIRES volunteer and flying fox rehabilitator Storm Stanford said while they are seeing a food shortage crisis for the flying foxes, they have only received a few reports come from the Central West about animals in need. "Compared to the rest of the state, it's amazing," she said. "As far as I know it is not significant in the Weddin [and] Lachlan areas but you will be getting more animals coming into the area because they're trying to find food, and there's nothing on the coast." The WIRES Weddin Lachlan branch covers the towns of Grenfell, Forbes, Cowra, Young, and surrounding areas. While flying foxes live in Cowra year-round, Ms Stanford said more may be arriving from the coastal regions, as flying foxes are migratory. "They do normally exist out there; it's just how many are out there at any given time. "I hope it's unlikely that people in the Weddin and Lachlan area are going to be seeing animals that are starving, but it is possible as animals attempt to move to find food that it will happen." Ms Stanford said typically a food shortage is limited to an area of several hundred kilometres but this time they are seeing a much larger area being affected. If homeowners who see flying foxes roosting in their yards can help by selectively removing netting from fruit trees and flowering native trees. Other things people can do to help include leaving out small amounts of cut up apples and pears in a high location. Ms Stanford said food should be placed up high as they don’t want to encourage the bats to come down to the ground. The fruit should be cut into small cubes, so bats do not drop it and come to the ground to feed. Ms Stanford said people should not leave out more than 300g of fruit per bat hanging in the tree to avoid attracting vermin. WIRES media spokesperson John Grant highlighted that members of the public should not enter bat roosting sites or camps to put out food, as this may disturb the colony and create additional risks for both bats and people. If a bat is injured or roosting on your property, Mr Grant encouraged homeowners to keep children and pets away from bats and not to touch them. If you find a sick, injured or orphaned bat, call WIRES 1300 094 737, your nearest wildlife rescue group or report online at https://www.wires.org.au/report-a-rescue Ms Stanford stressed that people should not try and touch flying foxes, even if they are trying to help as a small percentage of flying foxes carry lyssavirus and would have to be euthanised if a bite or scratch occurs. "Unfortunately, people who get bitten or scratched are nearly always people who are trying to do the right thing and trying to help the animal," she said. "So, we need people to understand that the best way they can help the animal is not to touch it, but to call WIRES. "We will try to organise somebody, a volunteer who's vaccinated, whether that's somebody from WIRES or from another organisation to come and assist that animal." For more information about flying foxes head online to https://www.wires.org.au/wildlife-information/species/bats/flying-foxes