Malayan Flying Fox

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Quick facts

Lifespan

15 years in the wild

Up to 30 years under human care

Diet

Pollen, nectar,

Flowers and fruit

Habitat

Tropical primary and secondary

Forests and swamps

Range

Across much of

Continental and Southeast Asia.

The Malayan flying fox

Together, we protect wildlife

For the love of durian

Flying foxes are threatened by over-hunting and deforestation. They are hunted as exotic meat and also consumed as a traditional cure for asthma. Previously, it was thought that flying foxes eat up the flowers of the durian tree and many orchard owners set up nets to trap them.

Studies using camera traps have confirmed that these bats are probably the most effective pollinators for durian trees.

Pollen sticks to their fur as they feed on the nectar, and is transferred when they move off to feed on the flowers of another tree. If flying foxes were to go extinct one day, so might durians. That alone is reason enough to conserve them.

The IUCN Status

Near Threatened

Likely to become vulnerable in the near future