The Sousouri Bannan or Seychelles Sheath-tailed Bat Coleura seychellensis is possibly the rarest bat in the world. It is also an endemic of Seychelles, thus Seychelles holds the estimated 100 individuals that exist in the world. Although historically it was found on four granitic islands – Mahe, Silhoutte, Praslin and La Digue – it is now believed to occur only on Mahe and Silhouette. The bat is listed as Critically Endangered by IUCN and is considered close to extinction.
Very little is known about the bat’s ecology, habitat, roost, and behaviour. Several possible causes for its decline have been forwarded, including predation by barn owls, roost disturbance, habitat loss and declines in insect availability resulting from the use of pesticides.
Nature Seychelles’ Bringing Bats off the Brink project has been monitoring the bat roosts on Mahe to evaluate threats to the bat and discover the possible cause of the decline of the species. This would enable action to be taken to bring back this rare and unique mammal from the brink of extinction.
Monitoring began in 2004 through a project called Bats on the Brink funded by the BP Conservation Programme (BPCP). This project was able to confirm that previous populations of the sheath-tailed bat on Praslin and La Digue appeared to have gone extinct. It also uncovered two previously unknown roosts and availed baseline information on the bat. A species action plan was drawn up that proposed further conservation and management activities that are urgently needed to further help the bat.
(Photo credit: Sinclair Lang)