In the middle of Port Macquarie is Kooloonbung Creek Nature Park. Perhaps it was the time of year, or maybe just the time of day when we visited it, but I found it distinctly eerie. We were met by a few squabbling Ibis and a trio of Crows. In the distance was a screeching which I initially thought to be Lorikeets. The boardwalk was a little worn and one of the viewing platforms look out across the estuary had sunk. Its proximity to a graveyard leant even more to the ambiance. And the midges. Oh, the midges.
Walking along the boardwalk through a dim mangrove was an interesting experience. We could hear birds but had difficulty seeing them, but had no trouble following the movements of fish/frogs/land mullets in the shallows. Twice something white in the water turned out to be a decomposing bat. That’s when I realised that the screeching sound wasn’t Lorikeets, and we looked up to see a colony of Grey-Headed flying foxes (Pteropus poliocephalus), numbering in their thousands.
They’re the largest bat in Australia, and feed mainly on flowers, pollens and fruit (the names Fruit bat and Flying fox are both used). At dusk they stream down the estuary and into the night to forage, an amazing event to witness. Despite the apparent population size, they are listed as vulnerable due to habitat destruction, and often die due to extreme heat.
Being at their roosting site in the early morning, we found them having just returned from their nocturnal activities and settling down to sleep. Some were folded up, already snoozing, while others clambered over each other, bickering. It was unnerving to look up and see little fox-like faces turning to watch us pass.
The mangrove was also flickering with Silver-eyes and Fantails, who were feasting on the midges. Eventually we were overcome by the incessant buzzing and tickling around our ears and eyes and gave up, retreating back to the picnic area to photograph Water Dragons.
Below is a link to a Youtube video of the flying foxes leaving their roost in the evening (the commentary is a little tedious, but the footage shows the extent of these flocks) – we stayed later one night and watched them ourselves, and I attempted to get photos of them silhouetted against the moon. I was partially successful!
That’s all for now – back to studying for exam week for me.
