Clouding over: The sky above Queensland darkens as a huge swarm of bats emerges from the trees
see highlights for incorrect info from an uneducated reporter.
More than 80,000 bats turn the sky black when they emerge during the day
Local residents say they are driving them batty by destroying the park
One third of Australia's bats are in Queensland where the footage was filmed
By LAURA SILVER FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 22 August 2014
Local residents say they are driving them batty by destroying the park
One third of Australia's bats are in Queensland where the footage was filmed
By LAURA SILVER FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 22 August 2014
More than 80,000 bats circled above a town in Australia, turning the sky black and frightening residents.
Josh Ryder, who shot the bizarre footage, said the creatures were driving the Townsville locals batty.
He said: 'They have been destroying the park and making the surrounding area hard to live in.'
Thousands of bats blacken the sky as the fly over Queensland
The bats live in the gardens but occasionally come out during daylight hours and take over the neighbourhood as they hunt for insects.
Crowds gathered to watch the mammals circling overhead in search of prey. Bats usually hunt during the night so they are less vulnerable to predatory birds, but by grouping together like this, they make it harder for one of their own to be selected for dinner.
Spotting bats during daylight hours is rare. They hunt in the darkness by emitting noises which echo off their surroundings so they know where they are going.
These bats were lucky to be flapping around the sky at all. Around the same time this footage was taken, hundreds of thousands of Australian bats in Queensland died and fell from the sky during a heat wave that saw temperatures in the region soar as high as 50C.
Josh Ryder, who shot the bizarre footage, said the creatures were driving the Townsville locals batty.
He said: 'They have been destroying the park and making the surrounding area hard to live in.'
Thousands of bats blacken the sky as the fly over Queensland
The bats live in the gardens but occasionally come out during daylight hours and take over the neighbourhood as they hunt for insects.
Crowds gathered to watch the mammals circling overhead in search of prey. Bats usually hunt during the night so they are less vulnerable to predatory birds, but by grouping together like this, they make it harder for one of their own to be selected for dinner.
Spotting bats during daylight hours is rare. They hunt in the darkness by emitting noises which echo off their surroundings so they know where they are going.
These bats were lucky to be flapping around the sky at all. Around the same time this footage was taken, hundreds of thousands of Australian bats in Queensland died and fell from the sky during a heat wave that saw temperatures in the region soar as high as 50C.
COMMENTS