Mistnets were set at ground level and 11–30 m above ground in lowland rainforest at Kuala Lompat in peninsular Malaysia, and Sepilok in Sabah, to compare the abundance of fruit bats in the subcanopy and at ground level. Capture rates in the subcanopy were up to 100 times greater than at ground level, averaging 3–7 bats per net-night. Species diversity was higher in the subcanopy than forest understorey. Two species that were frequently captured in the subcanopy, Megaerops wetmorei and Dyacopterus spadiceus, were previously thought to be rare. The abundance of Old World fruit bats in the subcanopy indicates that their roles in pollination and seed dispersal of Malaysian forest trees may be greater than previously recognized. Further research on foraging ranges, food selection and roosting habits is required to determine the overall importance of fruit bats in forest regeneration through seed dispersal, and the adequacy of existing reserves for their conservation.

Pteropus vampyrus natunae, the Bornean subspecies of the large flying fox, has important roles in pollination but unsustainable hunting has been reported in Malaysian states. We provide the first description of hunting techniques and intensity in Indonesian Borneo. In forests around Palangka Raya this species is captured in canopy-level nets to support trade in the provincial capital. We estimate that in 2003 4,500 individuals were extracted from a single location in 30 days, which, together with trends reported in interviews with hunters and traders, suggests that hunting in this region is intensive and probably causing severe population declines. Further surveys are needed throughout Kalimantan to determine if this trend is occurring around other cities and whether intervention is needed to safeguard viable populations.

Rousettus obliviosus is a megachiropteran bat endemic to the Comoros Islands in the western Indian Ocean. The species is broadly distributed on Grande Comore, Mohéli, and Anjouan, but appears to be absent from Mayotte. Roost sites were found to be both shallow and deep caves, in dark locations with infrequent human disturbance. Colony size ranged from 100 to several thousand and at two sites seasonal variation was observed. Total estimated population size was 7,100–17,100. R. obliviosus fed on a variety of native and non-native tree fruits and flowers, and was found in native forest habitats, underplanted forest and agricultural areas. R. obliviosus is a manoeuvrable flyer able to hover for brief periods and may echolocate. A small range, sensitivity to disturbance, limited roost site availability and deforestation combine to threaten this species. We suggest that the current IUCN Red List status of Lower Risk: near threatened should be revised to Vulnerable. Protection of roost sites, further surveys to identify additional roosts, further ecological research, and protection of remaining forest are conservation priorities for R. obliviosus.

The social structure of an Old World tent-making bat Cynopterus sphinx (Megachiroptera), was investigated in western India. A combination of census and mark–recapture data over 2 years (1996–98) was used to infer the form of the mating system, compositional stability of social groups and mode of new social group formation. The breeding population of C. sphinx was subdivided into diurnal roosting colonies, each of which contained one to five discrete roosting groups and often one or more solitary bats in adjacent roosts. Bats most frequently roosted in stem tents constructed in the flower/fruit clusters of the kitul palm Caryota urens. Temporal variation in social structure was assessed using visual census data for a subset of the study population over 3 years (1995–98) spanning six consecutive reproductive periods. The sex and age composition of diurnal roosting groups indicated a polygynous harem-forming mode of social organization, as groups invariably contained a single adult male, 1–37 reproductive females and their dependent young (n = 33 harems). Harem size averaged 6.1 adults in the wet season (n = 19, SD = 3.5) and 13.6 adults in the dry season (n = 14, SD> = 8.5). The same harem social configuration was maintained year-round, despite a high degree of synchrony and seasonality in the timing of reproduction. Juveniles of both sexes dispersed after weaning and sexually immature bats were never present in harems at the time of parturition. Adult females often remained associated as roostmates from one parturition period to the next, and group cohesion was unaffected by turnover of harem males. Adult females frequently transferred among roosts within the same colony, and harems underwent periodic fissions and fusions. The founding of new harems most often resulted from the fissioning of previously cohesive harems within the same colony. However, some harems contained disproportionate numbers of yearling females, indicating that new groups are also founded by nulliparous females of the same age cohort. A significant degree of heterogeneity in age composition among harems was revealed in the 1998 dry season, but was unrelated to age-stratification of tent roosts. Although formation of new harems may be non-random with respect to age composition of the founders, founding events are not restricted to newly created tents and often involve recolonization of previously occupied roosts.