Bats as bushmeat in Madagascar

Abstract

Bats are eaten by people throughout Madagascar and although the larger species like Pteropus rufus, Eidolon dupreanum, Rousettus madagascariensis and Hipposideros commersoni are preferred, small insectivorous bats are also eaten. The national hunting season for bats is widely ignored and both unsuitable hunting practices and high offtake represent a serious threat to bat populations in some areas. Bat bushmeat may be an important source of protein for Malagasy people during periods of food shortage but in general there are few data on the socioeconomic and cultural importance of bats. Fruit bats produce a single offspring per year and are therefore susceptible to over -hunting. Nevertheless, large roosts offer the possibility of community managed harvests to secure the colony and provide a source of meat but further research is needed before this can be considered. Roost sites also present the best focus for conservation and greater effort is needed to control hunting using existing legislation and flexible community -based solutions that are sensitive to the local context. The threat of pathogen transfer from bats to people is of growing concern as more bat species are identified as vectors of emergent viral diseases. RÉSUMÉ Les gens consomment des chauves-souris partout à Madagascar et s'ils préfèrent les plus grandes espèces comme Pteropus rufus, Eidolon dupreanum, Rousettus madagascariensis et Hipposideros commersoni, les petites chauves -souris insectivores sont également consommées. La période d'ouverture nationale de la chasse n'est généralement pas respectée et l'on assiste aussi bien à de mauvaises pratiques cynégétiques qu'à des prélèvements importants qui représentent une menace sérieuse pour les populations de chauves -souris dans certaines régions. Les chauves-souris peuvent constituer une source de protéines importante pour les populations villageoises pendant les périodes de soudure alimentaire mais en règle générale, il existe peu de données sur les valeurs socio -économiques ou culturelles des chauves -souris. Les chauves -souris frugivores ne produisent qu'un seul jeune par an, de sorte qu'elles sont sensibles à la pression de chasse bien que les grands dortoirs pourraient offrir l'occasion d'une exploitation gérée par la communauté pour assurer la sécurité des colonies et fournir une source de protéines mais de plus amples recherches sont nécessaires avant que cette alternative ne puisse être retenue. Les dortoirs constituent également les meilleures cibles des actions de protection de la nature et des efforts plus importants sont nécessaires pour contrôler la chasse en s'appuyant sur la législation nationale ainsi que sur des solutions locales plus souples et adaptées, basées sur la communauté. Les chauves -souris peuvent aussi transmettre des agents pathogènes et cette menace est une source d'inquiétude grandissante car de plus en plus d'espèces de chauves-souris ont été identifiées en tant que vecteurs de maladies virales émergentes.

Exploitation of Bats for Bushmeat and Medicine

“…12.1), as well as in Cameroon, Congo Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Equatorial Guinea and Gabon. High levels of hunting have also been reported in the past from islands off Africa-the Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius and Rodrigues and São Tomé and Príncipe as well as Pemba Island, Tanzania (Jenkins and Racey 2008;Carvalho et al 2014), although conservation efforts have reduced this pressure in some of these islands (Trewhella et al 2005).…”

“…In some places, hunting laws are hard to understand and therefore not followed by hunters. In Madagascar for example, bats can be hunted legally between May and August or February to May, depending on the species (Jenkins and Racey 2008). In addition, according to the regulations, hunting is allowed only during the day, and game species cannot be hunted at their roost.…”

“…12.1), as well as in Cameroon, Congo Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Equatorial Guinea and Gabon. High levels of hunting have also been reported in the past from islands off Africa-the Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius and Rodrigues and São Tomé and Príncipe as well as Pemba Island, Tanzania (Jenkins and Racey 2008;Carvalho et al 2014), although conservation efforts have reduced this pressure in some of these islands (Trewhella et al 2005).While occasional bat hunting occurs in Mali and Zambia, there is almost no hunting in East Africa, except eastern Uganda, and bat hunting is rare in South Africa (Mickleburgh et al 2009). Bats are also persecuted because of negative perceptions in Ethiopia (Mickleburgh et al 2009) but that is not the focus of this chapter.…”

“…Bushmeat is preferred to domestic livestock in many places because of the taste and perceived higher nutritional alue (Mbete et al 2011, T. Mildenstein unpublished data). In locations where domestic meats and fish are generally preferred, such as Madagascar (Randrianandrianina et al 2010), bushmeat becomes more important in periods of food shortage (Jenkins and Racey 2008). Similarly, on the island of Yap (Micronesia), hunting is socio-economically based, and bats are less desirable than seafood.…”

Carpe noctem: the importance of bats as bioindicators

“…Brooke & Tschapka (2002) documented the unsustainable hunting of P. tonganus on Niue Island in the South Pacific, stemming from the belief of islanders that taboo areas on the island, which they did not enter, harboured an inexhaustible supply of bats, >1500 of which were shot when the population was estimated at between 2000 and 4000 ind. Jenkins & Racey (2008) reported that although the endemic Pteropus rufus, Eidolon dupreanum, Rousettus madagascariensis and Hipposideros commersoni were the most commonly eaten bats in Madagascar, a wide range of small insectivorous bats also are taken, and the high harvesting represents a serious threat to local populations. The killing of the molossid Cheiromeles torquatus for food in Borneo is also causing serious concern , and the unsustainable exploitation of insectivorous bats for food in Laos has been described by Francis et al (1999), with thousands of Tadarida being harvested during exit from a cave and then subsequently smoked for sale.…”