The Spectacled Flying-fox, Pteropus conspicillatus (Chiroptera : Pteropodidae ), in north Queensland. 2. Diet, seed dispersal and feeding ecology.

Abstract

Fruits of 26 native and 13 exotic or commercial species were recorded in the diet of Pteropus conspicillatus. The flowers of 10 trees and the foliage of one other also contributed to the diet. Light-coloured fruits predominated, with 22 out of 26 native species being in this category. A 'raiders versus residents' model of foraging behaviour is presented, where the role of P. conspicillatus in the dispersal of rainforest seeds involves carrying fruits from trees a fter raiding the feeding territories of conspecifics, or by carriage in the digestive tract. The latter can involve only small seeds and dispersal distances of approximately 20 km are the maximum possible. Close links between P. conspicillatus and rainforest have restricted their distribution to as far south as Hinchinbrook Island, the present barrier across the dry savannah Townsville-Bowen corridor apparently being too great to cross. In light of the apparent value of this species to rainforest seed dispersal, and therefore to rainforest dynamics and regeneration in general, its present status as unprotected fauna should be revised.