Placentophagia and birth-associated behaviours of the fulvous fruit bat (Rousettus leschenaultii) from the Western Ghats, India

Abstract

Placentophagia is a natural behaviour in mammals. Although placentophagia has been reported from 18 species of bats so far, the instance from the wild are infrequent. Rousettus leschenaultii is a widely distributed species across South and Southeast Asia, and is consistently described as a common species throughout its range. However, the ecology of this species is poorly known according to the latest IUCN assessment. Through this note, we provide the first recorded instance of placentophagia and birth-associated behaviours of this species in the wild.