Kolovai Flying Foxes

At Kolovai in western Tongatapu a colony of Pacific flying foxes hangs in the casuarina and other trees along the road, hundreds of them visible from the ground, squabbling and shifting through the day. The bats are traditionally regarded as sacred and under the protection of the royal family, so they cannot be hunted, which is why they have roosted in an inhabited village for generations.

What you actually see

• The roosting colony - hundreds of flying foxes hanging in roadside trees.
• The daytime activity - the constant shifting and squabbling in the branches.
• The royal protection - the custom that has kept the colony safe.
• The village setting - a wild colony in the middle of a settlement.

When to go

Year round; the colony is resident. Late afternoon is when the bats become most active before flying out. Numbers vary and cyclones have reduced them.

Honest expectations

Numbers have fallen after cyclones and the colony is smaller than it was. The bats are high in the trees and binoculars help. There are no facilities and parking is roadside.

Nearby

Ha'atafu is west, and Nuku'alofa is east.