Economic Contribution of Fruit Bats (Family Pteropodidae) Through Durian Fruit Production in the Agroecosystem in Java Island

Abstract

The Farmers in agroecosystems generally do not know that the existence of fruit bats in agroecosystems is very important because of their function as pollinators for various types of horticultural crops with high economic value, such as durian and other plants that are chiropterophilic. The purpose of this paper is to determine the types of fruit bats (Family Pteropodidae), their role in the agroecosystem, and their role as durian pollinators and their economic contribution to Java. The procedure for preparing this paper, data is collected and selected from relevant literature with the subject matter of the study, then the data is analyzed descriptively-qualitatively-comparative, then the annual economic value is calculated from the durian production produced. It turns out that Java Island is inhabited by fruit bats of 8 genera and 12 species, namely Macroglossus minimus, M. Sobrinus; Eonycteris spelaea; Aetalops alecto; Chinorax melanocephalus; Cynopterus brachyotis, C. horsfiledii and C. titthaecheil; Megaerops kusnotoi; Pteropus vampyrus; Rousettus amplexicaudatus and R. leschenaulti. Five (5) types of which are found in the agroecosystem of Kokap District, Kulonprogo Regency, Yogyakarta. The positive role of fruit bats in the largest agro-ecosystem in Java Island is as a pollinator. Fruit bats have been shown to exclusively pollinate durian plants. On the island of Java, there is only 1 type of durian Durio zibethinus naturally found and in various areas different local durian cultivars are cultivated. The durian trade is very popular, especially during the durian season and starting in 2019 Indonesia does not import durian. If the price of durian at the farmer level is IDR 10,000 / kg, then in 2019, the economic value of durian in Java Island is at least more than 6 trillion rupiah / year), and in Kokap District, Kulonprogo Regency it is more than 10 billion rupiah / year. In conclusion, the annual local economic contribution of fruit bats in the agroecosystem is important, especially when the economic value of other chiropterphilus plants is added, such as petai, kapok randu. This information should be disseminated to agro-ecosystem farming communities to inspire their active roles in efforts to preserve the existence of fruit bats in their respective areas.

The First Record of Ingestion and Inhalation of Micro- and Mesoplastics by Neotropical Bats from the Brazilian Amazon

“…Bats exhibit a significant morphological and behavioral diversification, feeding on fruits, nectar, blood, insects, and vertebrates (Kalko, 1998). They play critical ecological roles in the ecosystem, such as pollination, seed dispersal, and insect control, including agricultural pest control (Fenton et al, 1999;Estrada and Coates-Estrada, 2002;Castro-Luna and Galindo-González, 2012;Kasso and Balakrishnan, 2013;Rodríguez-San Pedro et al, 2020;Aguiar et al, 2021;de Jong et al, 2021;Suripto, 2021). In addition, some species of pioneer plants, necessary for regeneration and ecological succession of degraded areas, are pollinated and dispersed exclusively by bats (Passos and Passamani, 2003).…”

Some bats are here: Reducing the Wallacean shortfall of bats in the amazon

“…This degradation of natural areas has a negative impact both on the climate as the forest is now considered a source of carbon emissions (Gatti et al., 2021), and on bats (Estrada & Coates‐Estrada, 2002; Palheta et al., 2020; Vieira et al., 2021), leading to local extinctions in certain areas of the anthropocene (Hutson et al., 2001; Voigt & Kingston, 2016) and long‐term effects as in the Brazilian cerrado, for example (dos Santos et al., 2016). Bats are considered keystone species in neotropical environments (Kunz & Fenton, 2005), playing crucial roles as seed dispersers (Kasso & Balakrishnan, 2013; Suripto, 2021), essential agents in reforestation of degraded environments (Muscarella & Fleming, 2007), and in pollination (Baqi et al., 2022; Buxton et al., 2022; Maruyama et al., 2022), even for plants of high economic, social, and ecological value (Fleming & Muchhala, 2008). Moreover, bats help control insect populations, including pests in agriculture and small vertebrates (Kunz et al., 2011; Ramírez‐Fráncel et al., 2022).…”

The first record of ingestion and inhalation of micro and mesoplastics by neotropical bats from the Brazilian Amazon

“…Bats present a signi cant morphological and behavioral diversi cation, feeding on fruits, nectar, blood, insects, and vertebrates 11 . They play critical ecological roles in the ecosystem, such as pollination, dispersal, and insect control, including agricultural pest control [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19] . Currently, 1,420 bats are recognized worldwide 20 ; among these, 181 occur in Brazil 21 .…”