Foraging of the Indian Short-nosed Fruit Bat Cynopterus sphinx on banana in shops and on the pieces dropped by monkeys at a temple

A Rathinakumar,S Baskaran,G Marimuthu

doi:10.11609/jott.2622.8.13.9579-9583

A Rathinakumar, S Baskaran + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.2622.8.13.9579-9583

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Abstract

The Indian Short-nosed Fruit Bat Cynopterus sphinx fed on the pieces of banana fruit that were dropped by monkeys on the tower of a temple and in nearby shops. The monkeys obtained fruits from devotees and shop owners. The peak number of bat visits occurred during pre- and post- midnight hours at the tower and shops, respectively, coinciding with the lights off situation and reduced human disturbance. The bats landed on bunches of ripe bananas hanging in the front of shops. The number of bat landings on the tower was greater than that in the shops. The overall number of bat visits were higher during October when compared to other periods of the year. This may be due to the occurrence of more festivals during October. Our study is an example of opportunistic feeding, in which banana pieces dropped while monkeys were feeding on them were eaten by the bats.

Highlights

Abstrtact:t TheIndfainShort-tnosedFruftitBattCynoptetrussphfinxfed ontthepfeicesofbananafruftittthatt weredroppedby monkeyson tthettowerofatet mpleandfinnearbyshops
After resting during the day, the individuals of the harem start to forage about 30 minutes after sunset. They feed mainly on fruits and nectar, which are rich in carbohydrates and water at the beginning of the foraging period, and leaves which are rich in minerals and proteins later in the foraging period (Elangovan et al 2001)
The foraging activity at night shows two peaks: one before midnight when bats forage solitarily on “steady state” trees; another post-midnight when they forage in groups on “big bang” trees (Elangovan et al 1999)

Summary

Introduction

Abstrtact:t TheIndfainShort-tnosedFruftitBattCynoptetrussphfinxfed ontthepfeicesofbananafruftittthatt weredroppedby monkeyson tthettowerofatet mpleandfinnearbyshops. After resting during the day, the individuals of the harem start to forage about 30 minutes after sunset They feed mainly on fruits and nectar, which are rich in carbohydrates and water at the beginning of the foraging period, and leaves which are rich in minerals and proteins later in the foraging period (Elangovan et al 2001). Rapid urbanization and habitat degradation, have led to the loss of many trees on which C. sphinx forages in the urban areas. We expected that this would lead the bats to enter into direct conflict with humans in urban areas to compete for food. We expected them to spend more time foraging when the lights in the temple were switched off

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Conclusion