Ten new incubators funded by Logan City Council are on their way to wildlife carers looking after vulnerable flying foxes.
The incubators are being lent to carers in Logan who are part of wildlife rescue group Bats Queensland.
Bats Queensland received a $10,000 EnviroGrant for the incubators and a separate $2000 for educational workshops.
Bats Queensland’s Robin Rowland who applied for the grants said it is a huge win.
“It was a massive boon for the organisation because we only had two or three incubators hanging around,” she said.
That means all 6 of their carers in Logan can be equipped to look after the bats full time, including at work. It also means the organisation can take on more carers.
“A lot of our Logan carers are working with baby bats that need to be kept warm 24/7,” she said.
“On top of that they also need to be fed four to five times a day, but that’s not possible without an incubator.”
Furthermore, the incubators create safer transportation to wildlife hospitals and bridge cost barriers that usually stop carers from looking after bats.
“It allows carers who don’t have the funds to purchase a $2,000 incubator can borrow one,” she said.
Management plans will be developed for major roosting sites at Regents Park and Mount Warren Oval Park to keep flying foxes safe and limit their impacts on the community.
Council received $20,000 from the state government to make the plans.
There are 20 known roosting sites in Logan. Not all are active concurrently.
Bats Queensland Orphan Coordinator Rhiannon Traish-Walker said roosting plans can be effective.
“Any effort by the council to better ensure public education and allow the Flying-foxes to live peacefully within their roost sites without the need for dispersal will greatly help in Flying-fox conservation,” she said.
Details for the plans are not available, however, measure could include creating vegetation buffers from buildings and other developments.
