Help flying foxes keep their cool with climate change

Gray-headed flying foxes in Australia are facing mass deaths due to extreme heat during the summer months. In December 2019, over 4,500 bats perished over three days of scorching heat during the Black Summer.

These bats play a crucial role in pollinating many tree species in Australia, particularly eucalyptus trees, which are a significant part of the country's forest ecosystem, including the preferred (likely only) forage for koala bears. They are also essential seed dispersers, helping to spread seeds and regenerate forest areas.

With the eight years between 2013 and 2020 being among Australia's ten warmest on record, Melbourne officials are concerned about the survival of these 9 to 11-inch bats with 3-foot wingspans.

Here at Global Warming Solutions, we are dedicated to supporting innovative ways to assist the survival of animals, such as the gray-headed flying fox bat. Will you help grow our movement with a donation before our end-of-month deadline?

Australian officials have devised a creative adaptation measure to help protect these creatures – sprinklers.

To help the species survive, officials have installed 32 custom sprinklers along the river in Yarra Bend Park, Melbourne's largest natural bushland park, home to a colony of around 35,000 bats in the summer. The sprinkler system uses filtered river water and can cool a given area by about 10 degrees Fahrenheit to reduce the risk of heat stress on the bats during extreme temperatures.

Technicians faced several challenges during the design of the sprinkler system, such as noise, durability, and protecting sprinklers against local cockatoos. They also had to ensure the system mimics a light rain shower to cool the bats without increasing humidity.

During trials, the bats showed intelligence and curiosity by flying through the water curtain, suggesting they were communicating with each other to explore the new shower system.

The sprinklers are the latest effort to help the species survive, and they will only be turned on when there is a genuine risk – which may be quite often with more and more sweltering days expected in a warming world.

As in nature, one solution will not fit all flying foxes. In the heat of summer, bats often rest in trees close to the water, where they are more sensitive to disturbance than in their regular campsite. Try not to raise a lot of noise. Bats respond to excessive heat by drinking water from waterways when tired. In this state, bats are less responsive and more likely to make flight errors and accidental collisions. You may help, if nearby, by sitting down.

It is critical to find creative solutions to address climate change and its effects because more than traditional approaches are needed. Developing new practices, changing societal behaviors, and adopting innovative policy approaches can help us reduce emissions and adapt to climate change's impacts effectively, equitably, and sustainably.

Global Warming Solutions is committed to finding creative solutions that help creatures like the gray-headed flying fox bat survive. Please consider donating to support our movement to save the planet and its many species before our end-of-month deadline.

More soon,

Rob