Published 21:24 IST, February 9th 2020
Australia: Panic grips small town as colony of bats swarm, watch video
A colony of fruit bats has descended on a small town in Australia. The bats have caused havoc for the local residents who have been forced into their homes.
A colony of fruit bats has descended on a small town in Australia. The bats have caused havoc for the local residents. The residents have called the large number of bats a plaque of 'biblical proportions'. The residents of the small town are now afraid to leave their homes because of the bats.
Town forced into lockdown
The bats have descended over the town of Ingham in North Queensland. The bats have also, unfortunately, take up residence in trees near a local primary school and kindergarten. Due to the sheer volume of bats, the residents have been afraid to leave their homes.
The fruit bats belong to a protected species of bats so it appears that very little can be done. The 'Bat-tornado' is so intense that the local air ambulance from a nearby hospital had to be grounded because the bats made it impossible to fly.
According to local news reports, the bats seem to number in the hundreds of thousands and the colony only seems to be growing. Take a look at people's reactions to the 'Bat Tornado'.
Fruit Bats fall into a category of Megabat and are also called Flying Foxes in some regions. They can greatly vary in size depending on location. According to reports some fruit bats can be as small as two inches while others can grow to the length of 16 inches. The overall wing length of fruit bats is over five feet.
Fruit Bats have excellent vision, arguably the best of all bat species. In order to find food, fruit bats use their vision and their sense of smell. There are almost 1,200 different species of Fruit Bats.
Fruit bats also have very sharp teeth according to reports that allow them to break through the skin of fruits.
(with inputs from agencies)
Updated 21:24 IST, February 9th 2020