The Mataranka Hot Springs are located within Elsey National Park in the NT, and are home to a remarkable natural event that takes place each evening. Throughout the day, thousands of Little Red Flying Foxes* nest in the trees surrounding the springs, but as the sun sets they take off in plague proportions down the river. As they fly along, they perform an ingenious trick to rehydrate. The bats swoop down into the river, soaking themselves, and then lap up the water from their fur while flying.

Why the rush? Why not just land on the bank and take a nice long drink? Well, if you’ve ever been to the Territory, you can probably guess…

As the sun goes down and the bats begin their voyage, another animal emerges to greet them – freshwater crocodiles.

For an hour or two every evening, the freshies attempt to play catch as the flying foxes dive bomb into the water. There is of course safety in numbers, and the vast majority of the bats make it through unharmed (and thoroughly hydrated)… but the crocodiles certainly never go hungry either.

I spent an evening desperately trying to photograph a successful croc hunt, but the low light and chaotic nature of the event proved too challenging. You’d spend a few minutes focused on one croc, only to hear a snap and frantic splashing behind you. By the time you turned around, only a few ripples on the surface would remain…

*Fun fact: All flying foxes are bats, but not all bats are flying foxes.

Want to learn more about these fuzzy flying puppies? Check out our post on bats!

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Little Red Flying Foxes/Fruit Bats (Pteropus scapulatus), Mataranka Hot Springs, Australia