Mammals
Little Red Flying Fox
Pteropus scapulatus · also called little red flying foxes
Following the unpredictable bloom of eucalypt forest across northern Australia, a colony of little red flying foxes can swell into the hundreds of thousands within days, only to move on again as soon as the flowering fades.
Overview
The little red flying fox, Pteropus scapulatus, is the most nomadic of Australia’s flying foxes, native to forest and savanna habitat across a broad range spanning the country’s north and east. Its unpredictable long-distance movements, capacity to form some of the largest bat colonies in the world, and distinctive reddish coat make it one of the more logistically fascinating bats found anywhere in Australia.
A bat that never stays long
Rather than returning to the same permanent camp year after year, the little red flying fox chases eucalypt flowering wherever it happens to occur, a nomadic lifestyle that makes its movements some of the hardest in Australia’s wildlife to predict.
Status
Least Concern, though its highly nomadic movement patterns make precise population trends genuinely difficult for researchers to establish with confidence.
Little Red Flying Fox: common questions
Why is the little red flying fox considered so nomadic?
This species moves unpredictably across huge distances in pursuit of patchy, seasonal eucalypt flowering events, making it the most nomadic of Australia's flying foxes and one whose movements are genuinely difficult for researchers to predict from year to year.
How large can little red flying fox colonies get?
This species can form extraordinarily large temporary colonies, sometimes numbering in the hundreds of thousands of individuals, wherever flowering trees happen to be briefly abundant, among the largest bat gatherings recorded anywhere in the world.
What does the little red flying fox eat?
This species feeds mainly on nectar and pollen rather than fruit, drawn to whichever eucalypt species happen to be flowering in a given region, a diet that drives its unpredictable, long-distance nomadic movements across Australia.
How does the little red flying fox help Australian forests?
This species pollinates eucalypt and other native flowering trees across vast distances as it follows unpredictable flowering events, supporting genetic connectivity between forest patches that might otherwise be too far apart to exchange pollen.