Fauna

The Palau islands is home to lots of animals  and has a wide biodiversity that has attracted hundreds every year! Some of the species present includes; 171 bird species have been spotted on the islands, 46 species of reptiles and amphibian species and around 8 terrestrial mammals.

 

Many of the mammalian species are have been introduced due to human activity, from stowaways or certain species being introduced on purpose. however the there is a some endemic species of bats that have be able to roost there.

 

Pteropus pelewensis, the Palau Flying Fox is the smaller endangered version of the extinct large Palau flying fox. This bat like to roost in small groups of 30-200 in tropical forest and swamp lands away from human activity but can often be seen feeding in villages. Reasons from their decline can be linked too females only producing a single pup annually. Another reason is locals use to hunt these bats for food and trade, this has since been stopped and made illegal. Also deforestation has be destroy its habitat.

 

If you are lucky you may get the chance to see a Megapodius laperouse senex, the endangered Micronesian scrub fowl. This small stocky bird is native to the island as it cannot fly for long distances, but is a very fast runner, making it difficult to catch. Furthermore this species is often very shy and hides out in the dense thickets of the Palau forests. It is an omnivore that diet consists of berries and invertebrates foraged from the forest floor. When is come to breeding, female scrub fowl will never use the same nest and will swap and share nests with other females. Interestingly these birds will use volcanic heat to incubate their eggs! The species is classified as endangered because of its limited range. It is restricted to only a few islands in Palau, that have an increasing amount of deforestation and hunting has reduced their numbers