Batty rescue for tiny, carnivorous animal
This beautiful creature is a ghost bat, which is the only carnivorous bat in Australia and one of the largest micro bats in the world.
Their diet mainly consists of insects but they have been known to eat lizards, frogs and other smaller bats.
The population status of ghost bats in the wild is considered to be vulnerable. Their numbers are declining due to the destruction of caves for mining, habitat clearing for agricultural use and even cave tourism.
As a result they tend to find refuge in large sheds.
The unfortunate female bat pictured was found by Bill Murray in his shed in the town centre.
According to her injuries we think she might have been injured by the ceiling fans.
On the day I rescued her I gave her little drinks of water with a small amount of honey in it then put her in a reasonably-sized cage with water containing Traumeel, a homeopathic antiinflammatory.
That evening I placed a weaner mouse in her cage and, to my delight, it was gone the next morning. Since then she has been fed a combination of mice, mealworms, insectivore mix and bat supplements.
She spent six days recovering in her smaller cage and has now graduated to a small cage inside a larger aviary. Here we can see if she is able to fly again.
Once she has fully recovered she will be released.
Although I believe it is usually best to release wildlife at their original place of rescue, in these circumstances it is probably better to find a safer area for this bat’s release.
I’d like to thank Bill Murray for caring for this bat and to remind people there are trained and vaccinated staff who can rescue bats. They should not be touched by the general public due to viruses they may carry.
Help us help local wildlife by donating to Kimberley Wildlife Rescue Inc. For all wildlife rescues call 9169 1229 Kimberley Vet Centre.
