New Zealand Bats - Pekapeka

Bats are New Zealand's only native land mammal.

Greater short-tailed bats are thought to be extinct, last seen April 1965. The lesser short-tailed bat Mystacina tuberculata and long-tailed bat Chalinolobus turerculatus are both classified as threatened.

The lesser short-tailed bat has a relationship with the rare plant, woodrose (pua reinga) and as the bats move around eating the nectar - they pollinate the woodrose - pua o te reinga - Dactylanthus taylorii . New Zealand lesser short-tailed bats are the woodrose's only pollinator and are the last surviving species in the Mystacina genus of bat. Another unique relationship our lesser short-tailed bat has is with the New Zealand bat-fly, which is completely dependant on its host - the lesser short-tailed bat. It is of concern that according to Morris and Balance (2008) a recent survey found no long-tailed bats in 13 of 15 locations that it had been found in the early 1990s.

The long-tailed bat as seen in the video below, when adult, weighs 7 -10 grams and has a wingspan of about 260mm. Their diet includes insects & nectar.

The long-tailed bat is sometimes referred to as the fantail of the night due to the similar unpredictable flight pattern.

The lesser short-tailed bat has no tail, is larger and less often seen as it comes out well after dark.

In proverb, the Maori refer to bats as pekapeka and associate them with the mythical bird of the night, hokioi.

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Below: A baby long-tailed bat that was found by the Department of Conservation staff - and released soon after.