Flying-foxes are vital to our environment but they are threatened by habitat fragmentation and loss and sadly they are actively targeted and killed as ‘pests’.
Vital yet villainised.
Flying-foxes are remarkable and vital animals — they travel vast distances and disperse seeds as they go. But they are targeted and killed when they are considered a threat to fruit trees or if their camps disturb local residents as they migrate through towns.
Fruit netting is a major risk to flying-foxes. They get stuck in the large holes where they often die a slow and unnecessary death. Photo by Mike Jupp / WIRES
HSI has proudly secured legal protections for eight species of flying-foxes and bats but some species are still persecuted despite their threatened status—especially grey-headed and spectacled flying-foxes.
Shooting flying-foxes is ineffective and has massive animal welfare issues. Many animals are wounded and die slowly, sometimes when carrying young. Safe netting is a simple and effective alternative to shooting.
We have secured a phase out of crop-protection shooting licenses in New South Wales, leaving Queensland as the only state that will still permit the cruel and unnecessary shooting of flying-foxes. Please take action to help stop flying-fox shooting in Queensland.
Human-wildlife coexistence is a focus of Humane Society International Australia’s wildlife campaigns. Coexistence means to exist together, to share landscapes and behave in ways that are mutually respectful and peaceful. Coexistence aims to balance…
Humane Society International is rightly proud of our extensive history of threatened species and ecological community nominations under both federal and state environment laws, however whilst getting a species or community listed is a…
Facing an extinction crisis, the Australian Government has made an alarming proposal to remove the need for recovery plans for approximately 600 listed threatened species and wildlife habitats. The first tranche of proposed decisions…