The little golden-mantled flying fox (''Pteropus pumilus'') is a species of bat in the family Pteropodidae. It is found in

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

and the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry forests.

Description

The little golden-mantled flying fox is one of the smallest species of fruit bat, weighs about and has a wingspan of about . The fur on its body is golden brown and it often has a paler head and mantle. This bat has claws on its feet and one (its thumbnail) on the end of its wings.

Distribution and habitat

The little golden-mantled flying fox is native to the

and

Miangas Miangas or Palmas is the northernmost island of North Sulawesi, and one of 92 officially listed outlying islands of Indonesia. Etymology ''Miangas'' means "exposed to piracy", because pirates from Mindanao used to visit the island. In the Sasa ...

(Palmas), the northernmost island in Indonesia. In the Philippines, it is known from Balut,

Camiguin Camiguin, officially the Province of Camiguin (; ; Kamigin: ''Probinsya ta Kamigin''), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Bohol Sea, about off the northern coast of mainland Mindanao. It is geographically part of Region ...

Leyte Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census. Since the accessibility of land has been ...

Maripipi Maripipi, officially the Municipality of Maripipi (; ; ), is a municipality in the province of Biliran, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 6,373 people, making it the least populated town in the province. The town' ...

Masbate Masbate, officially the Province of Masbate (Masbateño language, Masbateño: ''Probinsya san Masbate''; ), is an island Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located near the midsection of the nation's archipelago. Its provi ...

Mindanao Mindanao ( ) is the List of islands of the Philippines, second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and List of islands by population, seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the ...

Mindoro Mindoro is the seventh largest and eighth-most populous island in the Philippines. With a total land area of 10,571 km2 ( 4,082 sq.mi ), it has a population of 1,408,454, as of the 2020 census. It is located off the southwestern coast of ...

Negros Negros (, , ) is the fourth largest and third most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of . The coastal zone of the southern part of Negros is identified as a site of highest marine biodiversity importance in the Coral Tr ...

Panay Panay is the sixth-largest and fourth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of and a total population of 4,542,926, as of 2020 census. Panay comprises 4.4 percent of the entire population of the country. The City of Il ...

Sibuyan Sibuyan is a crescent-shaped island, the second largest in an archipelago comprising Romblon, Romblon Province, Philippines. Located in the namesake Sibuyan Sea, it has an area of and has a total population of 62,815, as of the 2020 census. Th ...

Siquijor Siquijor ( , ), officially the Province of Siquijor (; ), is a Philippines, Philippine Provinces of the Philippines, island province (List of islands of the Philippines, the third smallest in the country, in terms of population and land area) ...

and Tablas. It occurs at altitudes of up to about and is most common on smaller islands. Its habitat is primary forest and well-grown secondary forest.

Behaviour

The little golden-mantled flying fox is a solitary species and does not roost in large groups as do many other fruit bats. Instead it makes a nest and roosts in a tree. It feeds on fruit but little is known of its precise diet. Like other fruit bats, it plays an important role in dispersing the seeds of forest trees. This bat usually breeds in the autumn. One offspring (or occasionally two) is generally produced each year and becomes independent of its mother after about eleven weeks.

Status

Populations of the little golden-mantled flying fox are in general in decline. The principal threats it faces are destruction of its rainforest habitat and hunting by humans for food. It is listed in Appendix II of CITES and occurs in a number of national parks and protected areas but nevertheless, the

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

has rated it as "

Near Threatened A near-threatened species is a species which has been Conservation status, categorized as "Near Threatened" (NT) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as that may be vulnerable to Endangered species, endangerment in the ne ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q596205 Pteropus Bats of Indonesia Bats of the Philippines Mammals described in 1911 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot