Fiordland or Te Rua-o-Te-Moko Natural History - Aotearoa NZ's oldest Pekapeka-tou-roa or Long-tailed Bat

Shared by Central & Western Murihiku Southland Archive

Fiordland or Te Rua-o-Te-Moko Natural History - Aotearoa NZ's oldest Pekapeka-tou-roa or Long-tailed Bat: 1: A closeup shot of T7787 during this summer's bat monitoring in Eglinton valley, image by Warren Simpson, DOC 2 & 3: DOC Principal Scientist Colin O'Donnell holding T7787, image by Keith Barber © 4: T7787 during her health check, image by Keith Barber © 5. T7787 being held again, image by Jennifer Gollin © 6: Monitoring site in the Eglinton valley 2024, image by Keith Barber © This entry is made with the kind permission of DOC - Department of Conservation, who recently published this news on their own media. All content shown here is taken from the DOC News Site, see link below: A Bat's Life: Known only as ‘T7787,’ a long-tailed bat matriarch that’s just been awarded the title of Aotearoa New Zealand’s oldest known bat, was caught in a harp trap last month, given a quick health check, then released to rejoin her colony at Walker Creek in the Eglington Valley, where she has lived her entire life. She was caught this summer as part of an ongoing pekapeka monitoring programme in the Eglinton valley, Fiordland. Determined to be a record-breaking 26-years-of-age, or possibly even as old as 28, she weighs a mere 10.5g (about the same as an AAA battery). These pekapeka-tou-roa or long-tailed bats are threatened with extinction, having declined dramatically since pre-human times because of habitat loss and predation by introduced pests. DOC - or Department of Conservation Principal Scientist Colin O'Donnell leads the bat monitoring work and remembers catching T7787 back in 2000 when she was a young mother. She's since produced a pup every year for 20 years and will now be the matriarch of many bat generations. Despite a few grey hairs she seems to be in good overall health, and is showing signs that she's now stopped breeding. These facts are exciting for several reasons! Pekapeka are mysterious little mammals and we don't know how long they live for, so it's amazing to have this record and know they can live for 26 years if conditions are right. It's also encouraging for the species, as the bat's long breeding life bodes well for the species recovery and potential to increase towards pre-human population levels when bats were abundant. The old age of T7787 also indicates that predator control in the Eglinton valley is having a positive effect on long-tailed bats in the area. Prior to 2000, the population was declining by 5% per year, but that has been reversed and is now growing by 5% thanks to large-scale predator control using trapping, bait stations and aerial 1080. If you or anyone you know has any more information or photos to share or accounts of pekapeka or other native wildlife you may have observed or photographed during the years, please do share this with us in the comments section by making a comment in the space provided under the image page. Or you can make contact with us as per the archive front page, by sending us an email or text, or even calling in to see us.