Fruit Bat Monitoring.
Did you know the Straw-coloured fruit bat (Eidolon helvum) is one of Africa’s most efficient forest regenerators? A single bat can disperse seeds over 50km in one night. Despite their large colonies, which sometimes exceed 50,000 individuals, they are Near Threatened.
We started long-term population monitoring for the Straw-coloured fruit bat in 2013, as part of the Eidolon Monitoring Network. After a three-year pause during COVID-19, we relaunched in 2024 with three dedicated volunteer teams, comprising students and citizen scientists, working across Nigeria. Monthly surveys are conducted at established roost sites in Benin, Makurdi, and Jos using physical counts and acoustic recordings.
2013
Program started
Providing long-term population data for West Africa
3
Cities monitored
Benin, Makurdi, and Jos
Nigeria
120,000+
Colony size
Individual bats counted at single aggregation sites