‘Clarence’ the tiny forest bat was recently found stuck in a sticky flypaper trap, struggling to stay alive, in Tasmania’s Huon Valley.
The bat from Franklin was covered in glue and taken to Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary’s clinic where it was washed multiple times to remove the glue.
Clarence is now being taken care of by a bat rehabilitator for the rest of its recovery before it can be released back into the wild.
The unfortunate incident has prompted a warning from the sanctuary to choose environmentally friendly pest control methods.
“Sadly, the chances of survival for bats after being stuck in these traps is very low, as when the bat struggles to remove itself from the paper it can fracture the delicate bones of its wings or tear holes in the wing membrane,” they said.
“Please avoid using flypaper traps & instead choose more environmentally friendly fly traps or natural repellants. If you must use flypaper, buy or build a wire cage around it to prevent bat access.”
