Kolar Leaf-Nosed Bat

• 30 Dec 2020

Why in News

The Karnataka Forest Department, along with the Bat Conservation India Trust (BCIT), is getting prepared to save the Kolar leaf-nosed bat from extinction.

• BCIT is a non-profit organization which was conceived for the protection of bat species in India by protecting their habitat. It is headquartered in Bengaluru, Karnataka.

Key Points

• Scientific Name: Hipposideros hypophyllus
• Geographic Range: It is endemic to India. It is presently known only from one cave in Hanumanahalli village in Kolar district, Karnataka.
• Threats:
  
  • Habitat loss from land use change, hunting, and stone quarrying in the region.
  • Till several years ago, the Kolar Leaf-Nosed Bat was found in only two caves in the village of Hanumanahalli. For reasons that are still unknown, the bat became locally extinct in one of the two caves.
• Protection Status:
  
  • IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered
  • Wildlife Protection Act, 1972: It has not been accorded legal protection under the Act.
• Conservation Efforts:
  
  • The government had notified the 30 acres around the caves as a protected area.
    
    • Any development work here, including construction of new infrastructure, will need the permission of the National Board for Wildlife.
  • The Bat Conservation Indian Trust has been awarded a grant to conduct further research on this species of bats.
    
    • It is running an intensive awareness campaign in the nearby communities and they have come to understand the threat to the species and have started guarding this area from encroachers.
• Concerns:
  
  • Bats are one of the least studied mammals in the country, though there are 130 species in India.
    
    • Bats are vital for the ecology as they are pollinators, their main diet being nectar.
    • Bats also help in insect control and therefore, help in the protection of crops.
  • They are very adaptable creatures and therefore can often be found near human habitation or even in urban settlements, which makes them vulnerable.
  • They also have a bad image in the public eye, as carriers of diseases.
• Suggestions:
  
  • There is an urgent need to curb illegal granite mining and quarrying within five to ten kilometre radius of the roost (resting-place) to ensure the quality of other subterranean caves in the area.
  • Meanwhile, widespread cave explorations and acoustic sampling are recommended to understand the distribution of the species.

Source: IE