BATS, RATS AND PORCUPINES AND 
THEIR CONTROL 

P R O V I S I O N A L R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S 

( L e a f l e t N o . 2 9 ) 

I n v i e w of the numerous inqui r ies rece ived , regard ing the con t ro l of F l y i n g F o x e s , RatS 
Porcup ines in coconut estates, it is hoped that the fo l lowing in fo rmat ion m a y be of some help 
in the i r con t ro l . 

W c wou ld be gra te fu l if Coconut P lanters w o u l d commun ica te to us their exper ience with 
a n y of these methods. 

A.—Bats o r F l y i n g F o x (Pteropus Edwardsii): 
1. J i jVui t g rowe rs use kerosene d r u m s w h i c h t h e y ra t t le b y pul l ing s t r ings a t tached ' to 

•'. t hem. 

2. B ranches of t h o r n y trees and o ld hsh nets or w i r e ne t t ing is used to protect the f ru i t 
bunches. 

3. T h e shot g u n is ce r ta in l y useful in shoot ing d o w n bats but it m a y be diff icult t o sprfj 
t h e m at n ight . 

4. O n e m e t h o d of con t ro l is b y k i l l ing the bats o n the trees in w h i c h t h e y roust. A ten 
p o u n d charged exp los ive is hung on a b ranch wh ich when tired produces a blast 
big enough to ki l l most of the flock b y concussion This t reatment is pract ised Wi 
I n d i a , where the exp los ive is an open cast Gel ign i te p r imed w i t h a N o . b detonator 
Proper ins t ruc t ions regard ing the use of the exp los ive should be ob ta ined f r om tl»6 
manufac turers . 

B.—Rats : 
T h e use of a commerc ia l rat poison as a bait m a y g ive some measure of con t ro l . There-

are severa l such poisons in the f o r m of granules, powder . pa.stc>, etc. W h a t e v e r poison «5 
used, it w i l l be a safe and wise measure to adhere to the manufac tu re rs* recommendat ions . 



In 

Rat 
e net 

Messrs. Chatham House Ltd., market the following :— 
Zelio Paste, Zelio Grains, Muritan Powder, Castrix and Muritanyl. 

Messrs. A. Baur & Co., Ltd., Colombo, market the following 
Tomorin and Silmurin. 

Messrs. Colombo Commercial Co., Ltd.? market the following:— 
Cymag, Zinc Phosphite. 

Messrs. Lee Hedges ft Co.. Ltd., market the following 
Warfarin. 
Each of these preparations has a particular we, U., as baits, as tracking powders, etc. 

the light of rat control in coconut palms, the use of ground as well as tre$ baits is suggested: 
(1) The leaves of adjacent pahns if t ^ a a i ^ touch should be pruned back in order to 

isolate individual trees. If one carrierf out the followmg procedure, one should get 
satisfactory control of rars 
(a) Isolation of trees—by pruiung Jfnecessary. 
(6) Cleaning of crowns. v # r * 
(c) Placing of baits in crowns. 
(d) Banding. 

A note on the making of bait may be of some help—boiled rice mixed with dry fish fried in 
coconut oil to which may be added some burnt coconut is the most suitable base to which the 

u selected poison should be added, in order to make up the bait The bait could be placed in a 
ft half coconut shell or in the hollow of a niece of fcah&oo which in turn could be placed in the 
\i crown or on the ground. It would be best to set the baits out at dusk, i.e.. both crown baits 

and ground baits. The poison baits should not pe put out on consecutive days. The following 
procedure regarding the setting out of baits shonkji'i followed :— 

Unpoisoned baits should be set out for the firsi 4 days. On the 5th day, the poisoned bait 
should be introduced. On the 6th day, and 7th day unpoisoned bait should be set out and 
then on the 8th day the poUoned bait. • 

If this routine is followed then it means that after setting out the poisoned bait for the first 
time the sequence, should be to repeat with poison baits every 3rd day. This sequence could 
be carried on for as long as it is considered necessary. "• 

The first requisite for good control of rats as tar as baits placed in the crown are concerned 
. is that the crown should be thoroughly cleared of all breeding material, prior to the placement of 
Hjaits. 

Combined banding operations with poison applications may give very good results. The 
bands required should be of galvanized iron about 3 feet in length and of adequate width to be 
"^Pped round the trees so that the two cut ends overlap. The ends should be tied together 
°juy at the upper most and the lower most points of the band. Tying should not be done right 
vong the outer ends. These bands should be fixed at feast tkrtt feet above the base of the palms. 

—Porcupines : 
There is no effective means for control of porcupines. There appear to be no chemicals 
are effective as repellants of porcupine. 

•&&. The only method of protecting the coconut seedlings from the damage by porcupines is the 
<¥flL

 a protective envelope of wire netting round the palm. The envelope need only be about 
2 fot high and of inch mesh wire netting. If the base of each palm is protected by the 
netting envelope mentioned above, the palms may get some relief from the porcupine attack. 

66 

Thdi 
son