A Population of Flying Foxes (Pteropus giganteus) Treated as Sacred and Protected by Villagers

A population of about 300 flying foxes (Pteropus giganteus) roosts on a tamarind tree (Tamarindus indica) at Simla village of Purulia district, West Bengal. The site is about 15 km away from Adra railway town and on the Adra-Hura road. The colony is more than 100 years old and villagers consider the bats as permanent and sacred residents of their village. Every villager, aged or young, is so habituated with the colony that they traditionally protect the population from intruders and other potential harms. This finding has a relevance to biodiversity conservation with its own merit.