Wild kids

Common name: Common Blossom-bat
Scientific name: Syconycteris australis
Photo: H&J Beste/Nature Focus, Australian Museum

Bats

Common Blossom-bat

Common Blossom-bats are small bats that roost in leafy trees in north-eastern Australia. They are 6 cm long with soft red fur covering their body.

Common Blossom-bats often like to feed on banana flowers

Common Blossom-bats fly around at night using their large eyes and sense of smell to search for nectar, fruit and seeds. They land on blossoms and use their pointed snout and brush-tipped tongue to lap up nectar.

Females give birth to one live young in October or November and another between February and April each year. The young bats are born helpless but with some hair. The young bats feed on milk from nipples located under their mother's armpits. When they are three months old they are able to look for food themselves.