Grey-headed Flying Fox

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Grey-headed Flying Fox
Grey-headed Flying Fox

Grey-headed Flying Fox

Pteropus poliocephalus


Nocturnal. During the day large groups roost in branches of large trees where they sleep hanging upside down. Some roosting sites appear to have been regularly used by the Grey-headed Flying Fox since before European settlement.  


Details Description
Type
Mammal
Group
Placental
Other Common Names
Grey-headed Fruit-bat
Identifying Characteristics

Body fur grey with dark brown head and a golden-orange patch around the neck. Wingspan up to 1 m, body up to 29 cm.

Distinctive Markings

Grey or brown fur with orange fur around neck.

Diet

Herbivore. Natural food preferences are native fruits and the blossom and nectar of eucalypts, but also feeds on the fruits and flowers of introduced trees in gardens and orchards.

Habitat

Lowland and coastal forests and woodlands, agricultural and urban areas.

Native Status
Native to Australia
Sounds
Screeches and squeals.
Taxonomy
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Mammalia
Order
Chiroptera
Family
Pteropodidae
Genus
Pteropus
Species
poliocephalus
Grey-headed Flying Fox
Eastern coastal Australia from Queensland to Melbourne in Victoria, with rare visits to western Victoria.

Distribution maps indicate current and historic locations where species have been sighted.

Source: Atlas of Living Australia

Conservation Status
DEPI Advisory List
Vulnerable
FFG Act
Listed as threatened
EPBC Act
Vulnerable

The conservation status of species is listed within Victoria and Australia.

The Department of Environment and Primary Industry (DEPI) Advisory List consists of non-statutory advisory lists of rare or threatened flora and fauna within Victoria.

The Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 (FFG Act) lists threatened species in Victoria. Under the Act, an Action Statement is produced for each listed species.

The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) is the Australian Government’s key piece of environmental legislation, listing nationally threatened native species and ecological communities.

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