|
Translate:
       
Animal Info - Chuuk Flying Fox
(Other Names: 白胸狐蝠, ムナジロオオコウモリ, Caroline's Fruit Bat, Chuuk (Truk) Fruit Bat, Roussette
des Īles Truk, Truk Flying Fox, Truk-Flughund)
Pteropus insularis
Status: Critically
Endangered
Contents
1. Profile
2. Tidbits
3. Status and Trends (IUCN Status, Countries Where
Currently Found, Population Estimates, History of Distribution, Threats and Reasons
for Decline)
4. Data on Biology and Ecology (Gestation
Period, Early Development, Habitat,
Diet)
5. References
Profile
Very little information has been published about the Chuuk flying fox.
Tidbits
*** The Chuuk flying fox does not appear to be wary of humans.
*** Flying foxes are so-called because of their fox-like faces. They cannot use echolocation. Instead, they navigate using vision
and normal hearing.
*** Most flying foxes eat fruit and are also called fruit bats. Their teeth
are specialized for feeding on fruit. Fruit bats are
ecologically and economically important because they pollinate and disperse the seeds of
wild and commercial plants.
*** The residents of Chuuk are not known to hunt this species for local use, but
imports into Guam from Chuuk increased dramatically between 1986 and 1992. This is
symptomatic of the significant import of large numbers of bats into the Marianas Islands
for food from various islands in Micronesia.
Status and Trends
- 1994:
Endangered
- 1996 - 2004: Critically
Endangered (Criteria: A1cd) (Population Trend: Decreasing)
(IUCN
2004)
Countries Where the Chuuk Flying Fox Is Currently Found:
2004: Occurs in the Federated States of Micronesia
(Chuuk) (IUCN
2004).
Population Estimates:
[Note: Figures given are for wild populations only.]
History of Distribution:
The Chuuk flying fox occurs on the mountain tops of islands in Chuuk (Truk), Federated States of Micronesia.
Threats and Reasons for Decline:
Hunting for exportation for food and the conversion of the lower slopes of its
mountainous island habitats to coconut and breadfruit forest may be threats, although
little information is available on its status.
Data on Biology and Ecology
Habitat:
Lowland tropical rainforest.
The Chuuk flying fox is one of the species that live in the Polynesia
and Micronesia Biodiversity
Hotspot (Cons.
Intl. 2005).
The gestation period of flying foxes is 4 - 5 months (Bonaccorso 1998).
Early Development:
The young of flying foxes become independent at 3 - 6 months (Bonaccorso 1998).
Diet:
The diet of the Chuuk flying fox includes the flowers of coconut.
References
Bonaccorso 1998,
Cons. Intl. 2005, IUCN 1994, IUCN
1996, IUCN 2000, IUCN
2003a, IUCN
2004, Mickleburgh 1992, Nowak & Paradiso 1983
Top of Page | Search
This Site
Home | Rarest
Mammals | Species Index | Species Groups Index | Country
Index | Links
Last modified: March 5, 2005;
| 