They have a wingspan of 1 metre and weigh up to one kilogram.

Their lifespan is 15 years-plus in the wild.

They are endemic to South Eastern Australia and a vital link in dispersing seeds and pollen for trees and other native animals.

Unfortunately they have not moved on from the gardens as was initially hoped.

The destruction of their favourite roosting tree is almost complete, not to mention the closure of the children’s garden for the past summer.

They now number about 450 but their breeding season is now in full swing.

It was very disappointing to visit the gardens last week with my grandchildren, five and two years old, and explain to them why they can’t play in the children’s garden and other restricted areas.

Roost sites are now protected in NSW/Queensland but how well is this being enforced?

Several towns have similar problems — at Singleton 7000 bats have settled into a residential area, reeking havoc, noisy, smelly and bat faeces staining laundry.

With 250,000 visitors a year to our 130-year-old gardens, surely its time to consider relocation.

Sydney Botanical Gardens had the same problem several years ago and successfully relocated their bat population to rural Queensland.

One last thought, perhaps it’s time councils halted the planting of date palms, one of bats favourite foods in our streetscapes.

— GAIL HOWARD,

Wodonga