Eastern Horseshoe Bat

Family: Rhinolophidae
Scientific name: Rhinolophus megaphyllus

Where they roost:
In warm, humid caves, holes and cracks in rocks, old mines and tunnels and occasionally under buildings. Up to 50 bats roost together in a colony, hanging free from the ceiling.

What they eat:
They hunt flying and non-flying insects and spiders. They fly close to the ground or foliage to catch their prey, then carry them to special feeding roosts to eat.

Conservation threats:
Vulnerable to disturbance from human visitors to cave roosts, destruction of cave roost sites by mining, and loss of feeding habitat by forestry operations, and clearing for agriculture and housing.

Other information:
Distinguished by the horseshoe-shaped fleshy area around their nose. They are disturbed when people enter their caves, especially in the breeding season when they may abandon their young. They hibernate during cold months in southern Australia.

Photo © GB Baker/Nature Focus