A bat colony in regional Victoria has exploded to a record size, with some residents afraid they will be defecated on by one of nearly 38,000 grey-headed flying foxes while walking through the city's premier park.
Cleaners are being deployed to Bendigo's Rosalind Park on weekdays as the city council tries to cater for a flying fox population that has expanded by more than 3,000 per cent in three months.
Jonathan Ridnell has lived in Bendigo for more than 30 years and uses the park less now the population has grown so big.
"I still ride my bike through there when I'm going from A to B, but I don't walk in there anymore," he said.
"It's kind of a place to avoid if I'm on foot because it is smelly.
"It's not just a creek smell. It is bat poo smell … it kind of sometimes feels like it's raining poop."
He also believed it was having a negative impact for people visiting the city.
"People I bring to Bendigo love the architecture and go, 'Isn't it a shame we can't have a picnic in the park' because: A, the smell; and B, you just don't know what's going to land in your pizza box when you're sitting under a tree," Mr Ridnell said.
A fluctuating population
In February, Rosalind Park's population of the threatened species was about 1,200 strong.
But in the last count on May 19, staff from the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action estimated there were nearly 38,000 grey-headed flying foxes roosting in the park.
Grey-headed flying foxes have been a permanent feature of the park since 2010, peaking that year at a population of about 32,000 animals, according to the department's website.
The bats breed and are born in the Bendigo park. The flying foxes have typically favoured the fernery section of the park, but are now roosting over an extended area.
Concern for major events
Bendigo Senior Secondary College principal Dale Pearce believes the City of Greater Bendigo needed to revisit the master plan for Rosalind Park, which he helped shape as the college is part of the precinct.
"When the master plan was put together 10 years ago the bats weren't an issue, but they are now," Mr Pearce said.
"The city needs a space that it can use without the impact of the bats."
He believes the council needs to look at developing another public space if it wants to allow the bats to live and thrive in Rosalind Park.
Mr Pearce suggested the disused tennis courts on Barnard Street as a possible site.
"I think you go into there and you look at a car park, you cover it over, and then you create the public space on the top where significant events can occur, as they have occurred in the past through the lower Rosalind Park reserve," he said.
Bats expected to move on
Although a large increase since February, the department said the number of flying foxes roosting in the park was consistent with patterns observed at the site.
"Flying fox camp numbers often vary seasonally, with animals congregating when food such as eucalyptus blossom is plentiful, and moving to other areas when the food is depleted," a spokesperson said.
"In Bendigo, larger flying fox numbers are usually seen in autumn and winter.
"The population of grey-headed flying foxes in Rosalind Park is expected to decrease naturally."
Lower numbers are typically seen in spring and summer, when the flying foxes tend to move elsewhere.
Bats part of the ecology
Mr Ridnell captured a video of the bats circling the skies over Rosalind Park during the day.
"It really looked like bats in the belfry, straight out of a horror movie," he said.
"They're a really important part of our ecology, but deep down inside, I would love it if they were an important part of the ecology and much-loved somewhere other than Rosalind Park."
Responses to a post on the ABC Central Victoria Facebook page show opinions on the bats are mixed, with some taking the opportunity to show appreciation for the flying fox colony.
Grey-headed flying foxes are protected under the Wildlife Act, and it is an offence to disturb or harm them.
The City of Greater Bendigo has previously taken steps to help the vulnerable native species survive the summer heat in the park.
A spokesperson said Rosalind Park's grey-headed flying fox population had been identified as nationally significant.
"The City of Greater Bendigo does not have the authority to remove or relocate the bats," the spokesperson said.
They said the council had increased cleaning in the park from three days a week to every weekday, effective from last week, to help with the smell.
The two additional days of cleaning are costing ratepayers an extra $760 a week.
"The city has received approximately a dozen complaints this year related to the condition of the park, for a variety of reasons," the spokesperson said.
"Not all the complaints received have been bat related."
