Fig 1
Fig 2
Fig 3
Fig 4
Fig 5
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Order : CHIROPTERA
Family : Pteropodidae
Species : Rousettus spp.
Forearm Length : up to ~9 cm
Weight : up to ~100 grams
Rousettes are a small group of fruit
bat; there are ten species worldwide of which six occur in
Southeast Asia. They are typically encountered in forest-edge habitats,
cultivated clearings and fruit orchards. Their diet includes a wide variety
of nectar, pollen and soft fruits.
These bats are of 'medium' size, being larger than Cynopterus fruit bats,
such as the Sunda Short-nosed Fruit
Bat, but considerably smaller than Pteropus flying foxes, such as
the Island Flying Fox.
Rousettes are distinguished from other related fruits bats by their size, by the
shape of the muzzle, which is elongated, and by the presence of a well
developed tail. They produce an audible, rapid clicking sound by which they
are able to echolocate.
Within Southeast Asia two species are wide-ranging, occurring both on the
mainland and on the islands of the Malay Archipelago: these are Leschenault's
Rousette (Rousettus leschenaultii) and Geoffroy's Rousette (Rousettus
amplexicaudatus), with the range of the latter extending eastwards to
New Guinea.
The four other species occurring within Southeast Asia do not occur on the mainland: the Bare-backed Rousette (Rousettus
spinalatus) occurs on Sumatra and Borneo, whilst the other three species
are endemic to the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia.
Presented here are images of a small group of rousette from Phuket, southern
Thailand, feeding on ripe bananas; these are either Geoffroy's Rousette or
Leschenault's Rousette. Both species are known to roost in large numbers in
caves and to travel many kilometres to feed.
Figs 1 to 5 : Rousettes feeding on cultivated ripe bananas in a forest
clearing (Fig 2) on the island of Phuket, southern Thailand; up to 8 individuals were observed
feeding around 2 hours after dusk. These bats are either Rousettus
leschenaultii or Rousettus amplexicaudatus.
Note the long fur around the chin in Figure 5, which is typical of rousettes.
References :
Baker,
N. (2016). Rousettus sp. feeding on ripe bananas at Phuket,
southern Thailand. Southeast Asia Vertebrate Records. 2016 : 113-116. [pdf]
Francis, C.M. 2019. A Field Guide to the Mammals of South-east Asia. Second
Edition. Bloomsbury Publishing. 416 pp.
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