The distribution of flying foxes, the large frugivorous bats of the genus Pteropus, overlaps closely with the Austronesian sphere of settlement, to the extent that the two maps can be superimposed with relative ease—testifying to a long coexistence between humans and these animals. Equally striking is the fact that across Austronesia these animals are hunted and found either frequently or occasionally on menus. They also appear within domestic contexts, where they may be adopted individually or collectively as companion animals.
Although flying foxes predate humans by several million years, it is plausible that the latter contributed to their dispersal by introducing, or reintroducing, them to certain islands. Myths further underscore their remarkable navigational abilities, portraying them as capable of crossing vast expanses of ocean. Today, ecologists, biologists, and anthropologists concur that these animals play a vital ecological, cultural, and spiritual role within many human communities across the Indo-Pacific. The deep temporal presence of these species has rendered them pivotal agents and keystone species in shaping island ecosystems, particularly through their role as seed dispersers. Today, urbanization and socioeconomic development have resulted in the massive loss of habitat, to the extent that numerous species in the region—fruit bats and others alike—are now threatened with extinction. Conservation initiatives have proliferated in various areas inhabited by Austronesian populations. They have at times generated tensions with local communities who wish to maintain traditional hunting practices. Ecotourism and NGO are raising new problems in various places and Indigenous knowledge and practises are largely ignored.
The session will focus on Indigenous knowledge. It welcomes contributions on interactions with chiropterans in the Indo-Pacific, but also invites to the study of interspecific cohabitation and its theoretical and epistemological debates.