Slaughter of bats on Rota

The news Friday that poachers have killed off hundreds of endangered Mariana fruit bats on Rota in the last few months was horrific, an abomination that must not go unpunished. The report, issued by the Division of Fish and Wildlife, was chilling, and the scale of the crime was magnified by the wanton destruction of two roosting sites, the places where these animals breed and raise their young.

In one colony roost site, DFW employees found no bats at all and the ground was littered with .410 and 12-gauge shotgun shells. They also discovered carcasses of the endangered species. “Based on the state of decay and the garbage left behind, it was determined that the illegal hunting occurred on or around Oct. 26,” the report said.

The same poaching activity was discovered in a routine survey on Nov. 1 at another fruit bat colony, where fresh blood on rocks and empty .410 and 12-gauge shotgun shells were found. A dead juvenile male and female bats and an infant still clinging to her mother were also found.

Because of these poaching activities, about 10 to 14 percent of the islands’ fruit bat population has been decimated, according to DFW biologists. The current fruit bat population went down to about 1,000, compared to the estimated 2,500 in the 1990s to 2000.

“Hunting at fruit bat colonies is particularly harmful as the colonies are primarily composed of females, infants and juveniles, with few breeding males. The hunting of females with young decreases the chances for population growth,” DFW said.

Mariana fruit bats produce only one young at a time, which may stay with the female for at least a year. Because of this, reproduction is very slow and in turn causes the population to grow slowly.

The DPS on Rota has already been notified about these poaching incidents and it has vowed to go after those responsible for this dreadful crime but it has yet to show anything for its “efforts.” Even more dismaying, if true, are unofficial reports that one of those spotted hunting these endangered species was an influential political figure. Let’s hope that’s not true but if it is, that shouldn’t stop the Rota DPS from doing its job.

The fact that some dead bats were found at one of the roosting sites means these hunting activities were not even for subsistence consumption but probably for commercial purposes, with the hunters evidently intending to sell the bats to local gourmands. This should alert local environmentalists, who could tip off the police and even Crime Stoppers of anyone selling Mariana fruit bats for food.

In fact, everyone on Rota should be on the lookout for these perpetrators because this reckless disregard for one of those things that make Rota unique means these people don’t care one way or the other about the future of the island. Being apathetic to this butchery does not bode well for local ability to be careful stewards of the environment—exactly the argument being offered by those who oppose the marine monument proposal. If you want to be believed you’re capable of taking care of local resources by yourselves, then prove it. Catch these poachers and subject them to the fullest extent of the law. [B][I](Saipan Tribune)[/I][/B]