Bat fauna of Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory.

Abstract

Bat species recorded during recent CSlRO fauna surveys of Kakadu National Park (1980-83) are documented, together with information on abundance and distribution of species in five habitats. Twenty-one species were detected comprising 12 genera and six families. More species were recorded in the open forest and woodland areas, probably because of their greater structural complexity, the availability of tree hollows as roost sites and the larger area of such habitat in the region. A further four species are known to occur in the Park, bringing the total to 25 species comprising 14 genera and six families. The richness and composition of this assemblage was compared with that of other areas in tropical, subtropical and temperate regions of Australia. The Kakadu bat fauna has its strongest affinities with that of the Kimberley region. Specific similarity declines linearly with (direct) distance from Kakadu, but generic similarity shows no significant linear trend. The Kakadu region supports a rich bat fauna, including several species which are regarded as rare or of limited distribution. This has considerable significance for their conservation.