We are excited to share our new podcast – BATPOD – a choose your own adventure series for ages 10–15!  We live in one of the most beautiful parts of the planet and we get to share it with some amazing creatures.   Sometimes it can be hard living near them – take flying-foxes for example.   These animals are vital to our environment but they can be noisy, smelly and messy neighbours.   Your invited to join Tyron, and our team at Sunshine Coast Council, to try and problem solve ways to live alongside these animals peacefully.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sunshine Coast Council acknowledges the Sunshine Coast Country where this podcast was recorded, home of the Kabi Kabi Peoples and Jinibara Peoples, the Traditional Custodians, whose lands and waters we all now share. We wish to pay respect to their Elders – past, present and emerging – and acknowledge the important role First Nations People continue to play within the Sunshine Coast community.Welcome to Bat Pod! Sunshine Coast Council’s choose your own adventure podcast about flying-foxes. If you are aged 10 to 15 then this is the RIGHT mission for you! We live in one of the most beautiful parts of the planet – we’ve got the stunning coastline and breathtaking hinterlands – the Sunshine Coast really is paradise… So it’s not surprising other creatures want to live here too – but sometimes, they actually have no choice. Like for flying-foxes – they’re living closer to humans because of habitat loss across Australia. These animals are vital to our environment – however, they can be noisy, smelly and messy neighbours.So join me, Tyron, and the team at Sunshine Coast Council as we try to problem solve ways to live alongside these animals peacefully. Key points from this episode:•Flying-foxes are also known as bats or fruit bats because they eat fruits, nectar and pollen.•They’re mammals, they usually give birth to one live young per year. •They are part of the order Chiroptera, which means they’ve got hand wings – and have five digits.•On the Sunshine Coast we have three main flying-fox species – the little red flying-fox, the black flying-fox and the grey headed flying-fox. •The Sunshine Coast region is made up of land of two First Nations groups – the Kabi Kabi and the Jinibara people. They’ve been here for tens of thousands of years.•Flying-foxes are the main night time pollinators – which means many species of plants rely on them.  •Flying-foxes play a vital role in the pollination and seed dispersal of more than 100 plant species . •Without flying-foxes there would be no Koalas.Go to Episode 1. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In episode 1, we meet Uncle Lyndon Davis and Uncle BJ MurphyKey points from this episode:•Flying-fox in Kabi Kabi language is Garrimundi or Girrimundi •Flying-fox in Jinibara language is Bar BarUncle Lyndon asks what town is named after flying-foxes. Here’s a hint – it sounds similar to a word you learnt in this episode…If you think it’s Kawana, go to the episode titled Kawana.If you feel like the correct answer is Currimundi, go to the episode called Currimundi. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You’ve chosen Kawana – listen in to see if it’s the correct answer..........................................................................................Kawana is the incorrect answer. Kawana is actually derived from the Kabi Kabi word for wild flower - guana. So Kawana actually means Place of the Wild Flower. In Kabi Kabi culture this region is women’s country. Go to the episode titled Currimundi. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You’ve chosen Currimundi – listen in to hear if it’s the correct answer............................................................................Currimundi is the correct answer. It translates into Place of the Flying-fox and is derived from the Kabi Kabi words Garrimundi or Girrimundi.To learn more about Jinibara and Kabi Kabi culture, you can contact:Uncle BJ Murphy at https://www.munnimbahdja.comUncle Lyndon Davis https://www.facebook.com/gubbigubbidanceAt the end of this episode you are faced with a challenge. You find a flying-fox lying on the ground but you’re not sure if it’s sick or injured. What do you do? Pick up the flying-fox to get a closer look to see if it has an injury or illness? Go to episode 2.Or, tell the nearest adult and call the RSPCA on 1300 ANIMAL? Go to episode 3. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You decide to pick up the flying fox to see if it’s sick or injured. This is the incorrect answer as flying-foxes are wild animals and can carry diseases. To find out the correct answer go to episode 3. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You are correct! You should never pick up or touch a flying-fox as they might carry diseases. If you find an injured or sick animal, tell an adult, and call the RSPCA on 1300 ANIMAL. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sunshine Coast Council have given us 100 Batty Bucks for situations just like this one. First up we need to improve the situation for Sam and the other residents as soon as possible. But we also need to consider the well-being of the flying-foxes. We need to find an answer that is sustainable and works – for both humans and flying-foxes. You have four options. Once you’ve made your decision go to the numbered episode which corresponds with your choice.Option one – dispersal (Episode 5)Flying-foxes come home really early in the morning. If we use things like smoke, loud noises, lights at sunrise, we can scare them away. However there is a catch. There’s no guarantee the flying-foxes will leave forever, they could come back a few weeks later, so we have to keep doing it for a really long time – which is also pretty disruptive to neighbours. Now if the flying-foxes do leave this area, they might just go somewhere nearby. Something else to consider is, that this method is actually quite harmful for the flying-foxes – imagine getting scared every night when you try to go to bed and having to run to another room. Lastly you need to think about the price, it’s expensive. It’s 90 Batty Bucks, so you’d be using nearly your whole budget. But I guess there is a chance they will leave this area. Option two – make a buffer (Episode 6)By removing some of the trees or using sprinklers we’re able to push the flying-foxes back a little from the houses. So they’re further away, which makes them a little less noisy and smelly. By using this method we haven’t bothered the flying foxes too much and there’s little impact on the environment. But they will still be there and some people may still be affected. Creating a buffer costs 30 Batty Bucks so it’s a start – and you won’t break the bank. But you haven’t really solved the problem because the flying-foxes will still be there.Option three – create a flying-fox habitat in a different location (Episode 7)By planting trees and building creeks away from houses, it gives flying-foxes food and habitat away from people. This means less impact on humans like Sam, and the flying-foxes are happy too. Problem solved! Not quite. It can take up to 20 YEARS for the new habitat to be ready, so it does not get rid of the problem now. But on the plus side it only costs 20 Batty Bucks.Option four – education (Episode 8)Things like school talks, TV shows, books and videos, maybe even a PODCAST! – anything to teach people how important flying-foxes are to the environment. This means more people understand how important they are in keeping our forests healthy and they may not be as angry towards them. This option doesn’t damage the environment and it only costs 15 Batty Bucks.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

By using the dispersal method not only did we use most of the budget, we just moved the flying-foxes to a nearby location, not solving the problem at all - in fact we potentially made it worse. Local residents have lost sleep from the morning noise, damaged property from the smoke and their pets have been affected. And to top it all off the native wildlife has also been scared away.  Using the dispersal method is not an ideal option, at least to start with. So let’s try again. If you want to try the buffer method, go to episode 6. If you’d like to create a new habitat for the flying-foxes, head to episode 7. And if you want to use education as your first port of call, go to episode 8. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The flying-foxes are now further away and less noisy and smelly, we haven’t bothered them much and we’ve had minimal impact on the environment - but… the issue hasn’t been resolved. We started with 100 Batty Bucks, and we spent 30 creating the buffer which means we have 70 left.  What do you think our next move should be?If you want to try the dispersal method, go to episode 9. Create a new habitat, head to episode 10. Or give education a crack, scroll on down to episode 11. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Building a new habitat is great for the environment, and this site is a good distance away from humans so hopefully they’ll stay around here. The only thing is… flying-foxes like to roost pretty high up in the canopy of trees. It might take up to 20 years to get to a size which will entice the flying-foxes. This doesn’t really help Sam and their neighbourhood right now. And they’re at breaking point. Okay so maybe creating a new habitat for the flying-foxes wasn’t quite the right first choice in this instance. It’s a great idea and comes with so many positives but maybe this is a step to take further down the track. We really need to improve the situation for Sam and her neighbours as soon as possible. Why don’t you have another go?If you’d like to try the dispersal method, go to episode 5.Perhaps you think creating a buffer is a good idea, head to episode 6. And if you think education will solve the problem, scroll down to episode 8. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Education is really helping - people are definitely becoming more aware of why flying-foxes are so vital to the environment. We didn’t damage the environment doing it, and it only cost 15 Batty Bucks!However, educating people about flying-foxes doesn’t help the situation right now - Sam and their neighbourhood are not coping. We haven’t helped the situation at all and there are a lot of stressed out people. So education is a valuable tool to help people recognise why flying-foxes are so important to the environment – but it doesn’t improve the situation for Sam or anyone living nearby right now.  We need to try a different approach – at least for our first option. So let’s have another go.Would you like to try the dispersal method? Head to episode 5.To create a buffer, go to episode 6.And to build a new habitat, pop on over to episode 7. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

So we’ve created a buffer, your next point of attack is using the dispersal method. Oh… we don’t have enough money. Creating the buffer costed 30 Batty Bucks which means we have 70 remaining. The dispersal method costs 90 Batty Bucks. Bummer, we’re going to have to go back to the drawing board…We have enough money in our budget to create a new habitat as it’s only 20 Batty Bucks? If that’s what you’d like to do next go to episode 10.Or the education option is only 15 Batty Bucks. If you think this should be your next move go to episode 11. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alrighty, so the buffer is improving the situation with Sam and the good news is we still have some Batty Bucks left in our budget. So now you want to create a new habitat? Okay let’s get to it. We’ve got an area we can plant in which isn’t too far away, and there’s even room next to the creek, which they’ll love. Hopefully this will mean once this new area is ready, the flying-foxes will stay around there and stay away from humans.Uh-oh, Sam is frustrated as she hasn’t witnessed any further improvements. It can take up to 20 years for the trees to mature enough to entice flying-foxes to live there. You still have enough money left over so it’s time to implement education. Go to episode 12. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

So we’ve created the buffer and that’s definitely improved the situation. And as it was only 30 Batty Bucks, it means we still have money left in the budget… Now you want to do some Education which only costs 15 Batty Bucks. We’ll have to organise some school talks, do some interviews on radio, television, share resources online, create video content, maybe start up a podcast – let’s get the word out about why flying-foxes are so important – stat!As Sam and other members of the community learnt more about flying-foxes you created a sense of empathy. And although it hasn’t removed the situation it has defused it a little. Because you’ve only spent 55 Batty Bucks, you can afford to create a new habitat – which will hopefully make the situation better in the future. So let’s cracking, head to episode 13. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The situation improved as Sam realised how important flying-foxes are for the environment. Perhaps next time we could’ve done things a little differently? Maybe after making a buffer between humans and flying-foxes, which improves the situation almost instantly, we could do some education. That way we can create empathy for the flying-foxes, as the public is made aware of just how important these creatures are. But we got there in the end, so that’s the main thing! Go to episode 14. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nice work! You’ve made some brilliant choices and it seems both humans and flying-foxes can live near one another in peace! Scroll down to episode 14.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pop quiz questions1. What are two other common names for flying-foxes? 2. What’s the words for flying-fox in Kabi Kabi and Jinibara language?3. What’s the name of an area on the Sunshine Coast which means Place of the flying-fox?4. What are three things about flying-foxes which can make them difficult neighbours? 5. What are the two main roles flying-foxes play in nature or the eco-system? 6. How many seeds can one flying-fox disperse over a single night? 7. How far can a flying-fox fly in one night searching for food? 8. What does the dispersal method involve? 9. Why are flying-foxes living increasingly closer to houses? 10. What are three positives of creating a buffer to separate flying-foxes and people?11. If you find a sick or injured flying-fox, what should you do? For the answers, go to episode 15. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pop quiz answers1. What are two other common names for flying-foxes? Bats, fruit bats2. What’s the words for flying-fox in Kabi Kabi and Jinibara language?Kabi Kabi - Garrimundi, Girrimundi or CurrimundiJinbara - Bar bar.3. What’s the name of an area on the Sunshine Coast which means Place of flying-fox? Currimundi.4. What are three things about flying-foxes which can make them difficult neighbours? They can be smelly, noisy, and messy.5. What are the two main roles flying-foxes play in the eco-system? Pollination and seed dispersal.6. How many seeds can one flying-fox disperse over a single night? Up to 60,000.7. How far can a flying-fox fly in one night searching for food? 50km.8. What does the dispersal method involve? Using things such as smoke, loud noises and bright lights at dawn to scare flying-foxes away.9. Why are flying-foxes living increasingly closer to houses? Habitat loss – man made threats – building and development. Environmental threats – natural disasters from global warming.10. What are three positives of creating a buffer to separate flying-foxes and people?Distance between humans and bats – less impact.Flying-foxes aren’t harmed in the process.It has little effect on the environment.11. If you find a sick or injured flying-fox, what should you do? Do NOT touch it. Tell an adult. And call the RSPCA – 1300 ANIMAL.Sunshine Coast Council has plenty of flying-fox resources if you’d like to learn more about flying-foxes.Thanks for listening! Please share our adventure with your friends.Voiced byTyron de KauweUncle Lyndon DavisUncle BJ MurphySarah JonesMonika O’HanlonProduced byMonika O’Hanlon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.