Pteropus? vampyrus (Linnaeus, 1758)

Huang, Joe Chun-Chia, Jazdzyk, Elly Lestari, Nusalawo, Meyner, Maryanto, Ibnu, Maharadatunkamsi, Wiantoro, Sigit & Kingston, Tigga, 2014, A recent bat survey reveals Bukit Barisan Selatan Landscape as a chiropteran diversity hotspot in Sumatra, Acta Chiropterologica 16 (2), pp. 413-449 : 425-426

Pteropus? vampyrus (Linnaeus, 1758)

Large flying fox

New records

Lampung Province: Lombok Village, Sukaraja Forest, Sukaraja Village, Sumberjaya Village, Sumber Rejo Village.

Previous records from Sumatra

Jambi Province: Muara Bungo; West Sumatra Province: Mininjau; Lampung Province: Krui, Rata Agung ( Sibuea and Herdimansyah, 1993); as throughout Sumatra by van Strien (1996).

Remarks

Although we did not capture any Pteropus , four were observed flying in Lombok Village near sunset in late September 2011. Twenty-five individuals were also observed in Sukaraja Village flying south toward Sukaraja Forest from the northeast at around 18:00 in mid April 2012. The bats in the Sukaraja area were possibly from a roost on a small island in ‘Watermelon Bay’ (Teluk Semangka in Indonesian) near the north coast of southern Bukit Barisan Selatan Ridge (J. Yanto, personal communication). Three Pteropus species are currently known from Sumatra, namely P. vampyrus (large flying fox), P. melanotus (black-eared flying fox), and P. hypomelanus (variable flying fox) ( Corbet and Hill, 1992; Simmons, 2005). Pteropus melanotus and P. hypomelanus are only known from a few offshore islands in northern Sumatra ( Simmons, 2005; Boitani et al., 2006), but P. vampyrus has been reported throughout the island ( van Strien, 1996), including BBSL ( Sibuea and Herdimansyah, 1993) and nearby areas (this study, see below). Hence, we tentatively assign all observations of flying foxes to P. vampyrus .

Farmers throughout the study area reported in interviews that P. vampyrus gather in coffee plantations to roost and forage during the fruiting season. In the coastal area near Sumber Rejo-Way Canguk area, local people used kites with hooks on tethers to hunt commuting P. vampyrus . Villagers gathered at dusk and raised kites into the commuting route of bats until sunset. One to two black plastic bags were tied to the tethers to simulate flying bats and decrease the bats’ awareness of the kites (JCCH, personal observation). Based on interviews with villagers, one to ten flying foxes were captured by the whole village each night in 2010; 30 years ago the average capture rate was as many as five bats per person per night. P. vampyrus were sold (2–20 USD per bat) as medicine for asthma at local markets near the study area.