THE EPAULETTED FRUIT BAT 



nible owing to the dull mouse colour of their fur 

 and dark wings blending so perfectly with the colour 

 of the bark of the tree. 



It by no means follows, if Fruit Bats are in the 

 habit of visiting an orchard at night, that they are 

 roosting in the vicinity during the daytime. They 

 may be resting in the orchard itself, or their sleeping- 

 place may be many miles away in some lonely kloof. 

 When food is scarce, Fruit Bats range over great 

 distances. Sometimes there happens to be a farm 

 away out upon the veld, five to ten miles from any 

 trees suitable for roosting-places for these bats, and 

 the farmer is puzzled to account for their presence in 

 his orchard at night, as he can find no trace of them 

 during the day. Possibly the bats had flown from 

 some distant spot five to ten miles away, returning 

 before dawn. I have at intervals for a number of 

 years kept Epauletted Fruit Bats in captivity in large 

 aviaries where they had plenty of room to fly. It is 

 an interesting sight to see them climbing about the 

 twigs in the cage, using their thumbs as we would our 

 fingers. On the ground they are very awkward and 

 crawl about in a most ungainly manner. When hang- 

 ing suspended by both hind feet, if a fruit was handed 

 to one of them, it detached one foot from the twig, 

 and with a rapid stroke drove the claws into it. 

 Then, grasping the twig with the thumb of one or 

 both wings, it freed the other foot, the claws of which 

 were also driven into the fruit. Thus secured it 

 was leisurely devoured. 



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