530 
MAMMALIA. 
upon, by their extraordinary dimensions, and the descriptions of 
them are ridiculous exaggerations. The truth is that the Fous- 
settes never attack any animal, even the feeblest. They may, it 
is true, in the absence of their ordinary aliment, eat insects, but 
this is a rare exception ; and they are only to be dreaded by Man, 
in consequence of the incalculable amount of damage they occa- 
sion in gardens and plantations, as they devour every kind of 
fruit that comes in their way, and thus become a great source of 
Fig. 230. — Flying Fox ( Pteropus rubricollis). 
injury to the natives. Divers artifices are, therefore, resorted to 
to prevent such destruction. For this purpose, at Java the 
fruit-trees are covered with network or wickerwork made with 
bamboo slips. 
There are certain species among the Pteropina which, instead 
of retiring during day into hiding-places, as nearly all the 
Cheiroptera do, suspend themselves, with their bodies inverted, j 
to the branches of large trees, and thus await the hour of 
