Eastern bentwing-bat
Eastern bentwing-bats congregate in caves across the east and north-west coasts of Australia, in colonies of up to 150,000. These small Australian animals weigh around 13-17g and can reach speeds of up to 50km per hour. Eastern bentwing-bats use both sight and echolocation to catch small insects mid-air.
Read more about Eastern bentwing-bat
The eastern bentwing-bat has chocolate to reddish-brown fur on its back and lighter coloured fur on its belly. Its long third finger folds back, creating a distinctive ‘bent wing’ appearance.
Able to reach speeds of up to 50km per hour, eastern bentwing-bats disperse in winter, migrating to roosts up to 300km away where they hibernate.
In the spring, they return to the same breeding cave, where the female bentwing-bat gives birth to a single young. When the female bats leave to hunt at night, the infant bats are left together in maternity camps.
Weighing in at 13-17g, these tiny nocturnal mammals, also known as Schreibers bentwing-bat, use both sight and echolocation to catch small insects mid-air.
Animal facts
- Common name
- Eastern bentwing bat
- Scientific name
- Miniopterus schreibersii oceanensis
- Conservation status in NSW
- Vulnerable
Parks in which this animal is found
- Abercrombie Karst Conservation Reserve
- Glenrock State Conservation Area
- High Plains area in Kosciuszko National Park
- Jenolan Karst Conservation Reserve
- Killalea Regional Park
- Lower Grose Valley area in Blue Mountains National Park
- Malabar Headland National Park
- Mount Jerusalem National Park
- Mount Wilson area in Blue Mountains National Park
- Southern Blue Mountains area in Blue Mountains National Park
- Ulidarra National Park
- Wombeyan Karst Conservation Reserve