Seychelles fruit bat
Encyclopedia
The Seychelles fruit bat or Seychelles flying fox, Pteropus seychellensis, is a megabat
found on the granitic islands of Seychelles
, and on the Comoros
and Mafia Island
. It is a significant component of the ecosystems for the islands, dispersing the seeds of many tree species. Although it is hunted for meat on some islands they remain abundant. It is particularly common on Silhouette Island
.
Megabat
Megabats constitute the suborder Megachiroptera, family Pteropodidae of the order Chiroptera . They are also called fruit bats, old world fruit bats, or flying foxes.-Description:...
found on the granitic islands of Seychelles
Seychelles
Seychelles , officially the Republic of Seychelles , is an island country spanning an archipelago of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, some east of mainland Africa, northeast of the island of Madagascar....
, and on the Comoros
Comoros
The Comoros , officially the Union of the Comoros is an archipelago island nation in the Indian Ocean, located off the eastern coast of Africa, on the northern end of the Mozambique Channel, between northeastern Mozambique and northwestern Madagascar...
and Mafia Island
Mafia Island
Mafia Island is part of the Tanzanian Spice Islands, together with Unguja and Pemba. As one of the six districts of the Pwani Region, Mafia Island is governed from the mainland, not from the semi-autonomous region of Zanzibar, of which it has never been considered to be a part.According to the...
. It is a significant component of the ecosystems for the islands, dispersing the seeds of many tree species. Although it is hunted for meat on some islands they remain abundant. It is particularly common on Silhouette Island
Silhouette Island
Silhouette Island lies 20 km northwest of Mahé in the Seychelles. It is the third largest island in the Seychelles. It has an area of 20 km² and has a population of 135, mostly workers on the island. The main settlement is La Passe, where there is a hotel for visitors to Silhouette...
.