College goes batty for new arrivals

One of the new gorgeous fruit bat babies, or pups as they are known

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Hopwood Hall College has some new arrivals, four fruit bat pups .

The pups are the latest to be born at the College, after it took in 10 adult Egyptian fruit bats last year. Since then the bat colony has been growing, with four births last year. Now these new additions bring the total number of bats at the College to 18.

Female Egyptian bats give birth to a single young, (although occasionally it can be twins) which cling to the mother for the first few weeks, before becoming much more independent. Although smaller now, the pups will grow to about 15cm in length and gain a wing span of about 60cm.

All the College’s bats are housed together as they are very sociable mammals. Their tailor-made home includes a computer controlled heating and air system, complete with a misting system which keeps the humidity high.

The students and staff are now enjoying helping to look after the bats, feeding them a wide range of tropical fruits, served fresh each day and keeping a close eye on them to monitor their development.