{"id":674560,"date":"2026-11-04T09:16:15","date_gmt":"2026-11-04T09:16:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/674560\/"},"modified":"2026-11-04T09:16:15","modified_gmt":"2026-11-04T09:16:15","slug":"expedition-team-surrounded-by-hundreds-of-flying-foxes-in-madagascan-forest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/674560\/","title":{"rendered":"Expedition team surrounded by hundreds of flying foxes in Madagascan forest"},"content":{"rendered":"

When an expedition team visited\u00a0Tsingy de Namoroka National Park\u00a0in Madagascar, they were amazed to see hundreds of flying foxes swarming the sky.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The\u00a0Edges of Earth Expedition<\/a>\u00a0team was hoping to find a newly documented flying fox<\/a> roost but weren\u2019t sure if they\u2019d be able to track the animals down. <\/p>\n

Then, they saw hundreds of them soaring above, explains expedition leader\u00a0Andi Cross: \u201cThe scene that unfolded was spectacular: the animals filling the canopy overhead with light passing through their wings so clearly you can see the veins.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cross and her team were visiting\u00a0Dr. Tim Eppley<\/a>, chief conservation officer of\u00a0Wildlife Madagascar<\/a>\u00a0to find out how the nonprofit is finding ways to protect the island\u2019s biodiversity.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In particular, they were interested in three species of fruit bat that are endemic to Madagascar<\/a>: Madagascan\u00a0flying foxes<\/a> (Pteropus rufus), Madagascan fruit bats (Eidolon dupreanum) and Madagascan rousettes (Rousettus madagascariensis).<\/p>\n

\"FlyingLight shines through the wings of the flying foxes. Credit: Adam Moore | Edges Of Earth<\/p>\n

Wildlife Madagascar is monitoring this newly documented roost of\u00a0Madagascan flying foxes<\/a> in partnership with Malagasy (Madagascan) communities and researchers to study the lives of these amazing animals.\u00a0<\/p>\n

One of the things they\u2019re interested in is how they can spread seeds far and wide. These nocturnal bats can fly up to up to 30 miles\u00a0in a night looking for food. When they poop, they drop seeds of the plants they\u2019ve been eating, helping forests to grow.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"HundredsHundreds of flying foxes in Madagascar. Credit: Adam Moore | Edges Of Earth<\/p>\n

Deforestation is a huge issue in Madagascar. The island is thought to be losing\u00a0200,000\u00a0hectares<\/a>\u00a0(around 770 square miles) of its natural areas each year to illegal logging, agriculture and charcoal production. \u201cAs forests become increasingly fragmented, these animals are losing both the places they roost and the food sources they depend on,\u201d says Cross.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Understanding that fruit bats not only depend upon forests but also help them bounce back sheds light on their importance. \u201cProtecting Madagascar’s fruit bats is not simply about preventing the loss of three remarkable species,\u201d she says. \u201cIt is about safeguarding the natural processes that allow forests to recover, biodiversity to persist and surrounding communities to continue benefiting from healthy ecosystems.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having seen these mammals fly above her in their hundreds, Cross sees the importance of considering tree planting together with species protections, saying: \u201cAs pressure on Madagascar’s remaining forests intensifies, understanding the role of these often-overlooked animals could become an important part of building a more resilient future for the island.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Fly fox roost. Credit: Adam Moore | Edges Of Earth<\/p>\n

More amazing wildlife stories from around the world<\/p>\n

Top image: Flying foxes in Madagascar. Credit: Adam Moore | Edges Of Earth<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When an expedition team visited\u00a0Tsingy de Namoroka National Park\u00a0in Madagascar, they were amazed to see hundreds of flying…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":674561,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[61,60,82,263],"class_list":["post-674560","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-science","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/674560","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=674560"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/674560\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/674561"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=674560"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=674560"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=674560"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}