Flying-fox roost monitoring and locations

Flying-fox roost locations

Flying-foxes appear to have an affinity to particular locations and will tend to return to certain locations (sometimes referred to as camps) for rest and sleep during the day, over an extended period or in seasonal cycles. These congregations of flying-foxes can be relatively static, in terms of size and spatial distribution, or they may vary over time – ebbing and flowing due to changing seasons, surrounding vegetation, or micro climatic structures.

The best available science, and widespread anecdotal evidence also indicates that flying-foxes have a strong tendency to utilise locations that are already being used by other flying-foxes. This means that flying-foxes have an affinity to gather in groups, and a tendency for these gatherings to occur and be repeated at specific sites (often clusters of trees) in any given area.

Some of these sites are monitored and are recorded on the Commonwealth Government National Flying-fox monitoring viewer. This viewer provides information about the location, size, and species recorded throughout Queensland and the rest of Australia. It should be noted that the National flying-fox monitoring viewer is not a definitive dataset of all flying-fox locations in Queensland, however, it may provide helpful information in determining if a particular location meets the definition of a ‘flying-fox roost’ under the Nature Conservation Act 1992.

National flying-fox monitoring program

The National Flying-fox Monitoring Program (NFFMP) is a collaboration between the Australian Government, CSIRO, South Australian, Victorian, New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory and Queensland governments, and local governments and volunteers.

This monitoring program collects information on:

• flying-fox congregations including their seasonal use and areas of occupancy
• the number of flying-foxes in a congregation on the dates monitored
• the breeding status of flying-foxes and whether young are present
• the species which are present

The species which are monitored include:

• black flying-fox, Pteropus alecto
• grey-headed flying-fox, Pteropus poliocephalus
• little red flying-fox, Pteropus scapulatus
• spectacled flying-fox, Pteropus conspicillatus

Data is simultaneously collected across all the participating states on a quarterly basis using monitoring and methodology techniques developed by CSIRO. This information dates back to November 2012 and is also available on the Australian Government – Department of Agriculture, Water and Environment website.

Further information

For more information on the department’s flying-fox roost monitoring program, including how to volunteer for the NFFMP, please refer to the Questions and answers page or contact wildlife.management@des.qld.gov.au.