The bats of IISC

It has one of the largest academic campuses in Bangalore and it is a world renowned institution. It has always been known as Bangalore’s pride and India’s centre of excellence.

One of the oldest institutions of science and research in India, it has always produced some of the finest scientists and researchers. Some of India’s top most scientists, researchers and teachers have been associated with the institution.

However, this post is not about the men of science that the Institute has produced or the varied research in the many branches of science that it has carried out. The post will deal with the remarkable flora and fauna of the sprawling premises which can put any small sanctuary or patch of green to shame.

What makes this campus unique is that it is the home of a variety of bats and not merely the common fruit bat that are found in many places in Bangalore. These bats are found in fairly large numbers and thankfully apart from the residents of the institute and a few ornithologists and animal lovers, it is relatively unknown.  

This is the lush green campus of the Indian Institute of Science (IISc)  located in Malleswaram in north Bangalore.

The Institute has a hoary and interesting history and its founding goes back to the times of the Maharaja of Mysore, Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV and JRD Tata.

The Maharaja handed over 150.54 hectares of almost uncoil beauty and wilderness, scrub and farmland to the institute in 1909. Later, the institute got more land and today its stands on 179.28 hectares. The present green of the institute owes much to physicist C. V. Raman, botanist G. H. Krumbigel, atomist Homi Bhabha and scientists B. S. Nirody and C. N. R. Rao.

The IISc campus boasts of a harmonious mix of native, exotic and medicinal-scientific plants and flowers. The vegetation consists of a large number of avenue trees like Delonix regia (May flower), Samanea saman (Rain tree), Swietenia mahogany (Mahogany), Cassia, Tabebuia, Lantana and Ficus benjamina. There are other species of trees too.

The large number of fruits trees and the vast green have encouraged the Fruit Bat to make the campus its home.  Apart from the fruit bat-which is known to ornithologists as Indian short-nosed fruit bat or Cynopterus sphinx sphinx, there are several other species of bats such as the Indian flying fox (Pteropus giganteus giganteus), the Egyptian mouse-tailed bat (Tadarida aeygptica), Pigmy pipistrelle (Pipistrellus mimus), Coromandra pipistrelle (Pipistrellus coromandra), Ceylon pipistrelle (Pipistrellus ceylonicus) and even the Indian false vampire bat (Megaderma lyra).

Of all of them, the Indian short-nosed fruit bat outscores other bats in their numbers and colonies.

The main reason, already enumerated above, for the prevalence of so many species of bats is the availability of  fruit species such as Muntingia calabura (Singapore Cherry), Broussonetia papyrifera (paper mulberry), Mangifera indica (mango), Psidium guajava (guava), Tamarindus indica (tamarind), Santalum album (sandal wood), Manilkara zapota (sapota), Terminalia catappa (Indian almond), Musa paradisiaca (banana) and Syzygium cuminii.

These trees, apart from a host of other fruit bearing greens, provide the perfect locale for these bats. The relative lack of disturbing activities such as construction deforestation and to a certain extent the lack of predators have encourage the bats to colonise near buildings which houses the various departments of the institute.

An inhouse survey of the flora and fauna and other studies have put the number of fruit bats near 200. Similarly, 200 Indian flying fox have been counted.  The rest of the species are insectivorous and their roosting sites are crevices in walls, roof tops, gables and places between pipes. However, these bats are much less in numbers that the fruit bats.

There are  more than 1,200 species of bats and they represent one-fifth of all mammal species. They range from the world's smallest mammal- the tiny bumblebee bat that weighs less than a penny- to one of the largest-giant flying foxes with six-foot wingspans.

In India, 109 species of bats have so far been identified and the IISC is a virtual repository as it has the pest Fruit bat-the smallest to the Flying Fox-the biggest. Care to check out. Then head for the IISc campus. Prior permission to study them or visit would always be better.

Bats of Bull temple

Where else but in Bangalore would you find a giant Nandi, a huge Ganesha, two other temples, Bats, park, rocks and a playground for children.

As if this is not enough, there is one of the oldest engineering colleges just opposite and also a women’s college. It is also the origin of the Vrishabhavati.

The area is also part of the heritage ward of Bangalore and it is located on one of the oldest and busiest streets pf Bangalore.

This is the Bugle Rock Park of Bangalore. Apart from being a geological marvel as it dates back to billions of years ago, it also houses a watch tower built by Kempe Gowda.

But in this post, we are set to deal with the hundred of fruit bats that have made this park their home for several decades.

Old timers point out that the bats were present when the idea of Bugle rock park took shape. They say when the area of Basavanagudi was conceived in the early years of the 20^th century, the Dodda Ganesha Temple and the Nandi were the only structures here. Both were small and today several structures have been added.

The area was full of rocks and trees and part from  bats, other types of wildlife was found. However, growing urbanisation and greed for land have ensured that the wildlife disappeared and only the bats remain.

The bats find the park ideal for habitation. The bats are also called as Indian Flying Fox. They belong to the Pteropus Giganteus family. They are listed as among the least threatened bats as per the 2006 IUCN Red list of  threatened species.

The Indian flying fox is a species of megabat and it is commonly found in India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, China, Nepal, Pakistan and Maldives.

It is also known as the Greater Indian fruit bat and it lives mainly in forests. It is a very large bat with a wingspan between 1.2 and 1.5 m (3 feet 10 inches and 4 feet 10 inches). It is nocturnal and feeds mainly on ripe fruits, such as mangoes and bananas and nectar.

This bat is gregarious and lives in colonies which can number a few hundred. Their offspring have no specific name besides young. They have one to two young.

The Indian flying fox lives in tropical forests and swamps, where a large body of water is nearby. Since, the Bugle Rock formed part of a bigger swamp, they lived here.

Today, the bats prefer the roost trees in the central area of the park. There are a little more than two dozen such trees and they grow to a height of  20 to 40 feet.

The bats prefer the Ficus, Mangifera Indica, Rain tree, Jackfruit and Gulmohar trees here. There is need to preserve this little kingdom of the bats.    

Apart from the park here, another urban haven for bats is the office of the Commissioner of Police on Infantry road.