Cooks River at dusk - the black marks in the sky are the bats leaving their home in Wolli Creek - I am told it is a spectacular sight to see them leave from the vantage point of just outside the park
Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens Trust have been concerned about a large colony of bats who have made their home in the Gardens for years. The bats are grey-headed flying foxes, which are listed as a threatened species in Australia. The Trust say the bats are destroying trees in ‘Palm Grove’ & it’s true, they are denuding the trees.
Federal MP Peter Garrett is about to decide whether to allow the Trust to get rid of the bats (they say humanely) by causing a noise, which the bats are unable to tolerate, hoping they will move & find another home. There are many problems with this.
- They intend to do this in the breeding season when many of the mothers are pregnant. The dispersal techniques of noise, harassment & sleep deprivation result in many miscarriages.
- The bats become disorientated & exhausted (as we all would) during this intervention. As a result there are many injuries.
- It’s cruel & at the risk of sounding like a zealot, all about man’s domination over animals. The gardens are 75 acres in size. Yes, they are destroying a certain amount of trees on the south side of the gardens, but there are a lot of other trees & the grove can be replaced.
- The Trust says the bats will find another home, but on the small chance they do, this itself will likely result in problems. They may try to join other colonies, which will make other areas overburdened with bats.
- They may stay in the gardens moving to other trees they have so far left alone.
- They are disliked in residential areas for good reasons. If they relocate to these areas, it is likely residents will campaign to get rid of them or take the matter into their own hands. It’s moving a ‘problem’ to another area & another community.
I was at the NSW Art Gallery at dusk last week. It is a truly beautiful & special sight to watch the bats quietly fly over the Domain as they go off to search for food during the night. It is also a very good thing for tourism. Many countries do not have such nature in the CBD. The tourists & I stood for a long time watching them & we all loved the sight. The Trust & the City of Sydney should be promoting the bats as a tourism highlight.
I trust WIRES &, when they say there will be a problem with the dispersal intervention, I believe it. There are a lot of other organisations who joined with WIRES opposing the bat dispersion. If there wasn’t a significant & valid reason, I do not think these organisations would take on the Royal Botanic Gardens Trust.
I found this birds nest in Dulwich Hill last week - they used all sorts of material to make it - they even have 3 little doonas for 3 little eggs
Personally I think we humans are constantly taking away habitat from wildlife. We control ‘our’ environment at the cost of other living beings & many times we do this as our ‘given right.’
The bats are usually nomadic, seeking warm places. Experts believe the Heat Island Effect caused by our love & prolific use of cement & paved surfaces has improved conditions for the bats in Sydney so they have stayed. We have also had a long & protracted drought so why would the bats move on as they usually do when they know there is limited food & water outside the city? They stay where there is food & water & once the drought is well & truly over, some of them may return to their nomadic lifestyle. We just need to be patient.
I think the bats should be allowed to stay. Although there are negatives, there are just as many positives, not the least these bats being a threatened species. It is not as simple as the Trust makes out. Trees benefit humans in many ways, but they are the homes for birds & animals. Sometimes we have to give over areas & tree assets to them even if only out of fairness & compassion.
You can read a media release from the Humane Society, WIRES, Bat Advocacy & WWF written yesterday – Eviction_of_Flying_Foxes
If you want to join the voices supporting the bats’ right to remain in the Royal Botanic Gardens, you can write to Peter Garrett MP via his online contact page – http://www.aph.gov.au/house/members/memfeedback.asp?id=HV4 or via his e-mail – mailto:Peter.Garrett.MP@aph.gov.au
You can read about them on the Royal Botanic Gardens Trust web-site – http://www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/welcome_to_bgt/royal_botanic_gardens/garden_features/wildlife/flying-foxes Today’s news about the bats on ABC News – http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/03/24/2854578.htm?section=justin
SAVING OUR TREES - Marrickville municipality 
2 comments
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March 26, 2010 at 4:00 pm
annie sutherland
In reply to the comment on ‘Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens Trust wants ‘threatened species’ bats banished’ article….
Flying Fox are a transient species so a Flying Fox may be in the Royal Botanic Gardens one day and in another camp on a different day. They move from camp to camp across the whole eastern seaboard. The numbers in the Royal Botanic Gardens vary enormously every year (as they do in all the camps) without any relocation methods being employed.
Yes, the females may be pregnant in their first trimester. But this time was chosen after detailed consultation with Flying Fox experts who consider that timing will pose the least risk for stress induced abortions.
As an organisation dedicated to Saving Our Trees it appears that you may only be interested in saving trees in your own locality and not as a general principle.
If the Flying Fox camp remains in the Royal Botanic Gardens in Sydney the eventual outcome will be that they will destroy all the trees and then will choose to relocate by themselves anyway.
Many of the trees under threat within the Royal Botanic Gardens because of the Flying Fox are significant in their own right, having been collected from other places many years ago. They are not all ‘easily replaced’.
The Royal Botanic Gardens are a vitally important institution for Sydney and if the Flying Fox are not relocated they will be irreparably damaged.
Annie Sutherland. Friends of the Botanic Gardens Inc.
May 11, 2010 at 1:32 pm
Senka
So how do the Botanic Gardens plan to relocate the bats without harming them? Or causing any kind of harm towards them?
They are very special and need to be completely protected. I personally would only go to the gardens to see the flying foxes. Not the trees.
Look forward to your response. Senka
Protecting Sydney Wildlife
Dear Senka,
The Royal Botanic Gardens Trust say the bats won’t be hurt by the use of noise dispersion intervention. Animal welfare groups such as WIRES, Bat Advocacy, Humane Society & WWF all say otherwise. It’s a tricky subject as both the Botanic Gardens and the bats are important. In the post there is a link to the Royal Botanic Gardens Trust web-site which may interest you. Thanks for your comment.
Jacqueline