Media release

From: RiAus

THE TINY SOUTHERN BENT-WING BAT TAKES THE GLORY

It is critically endangered, fits in the palm of your hand, weighs about as much as a 50cent piece, has but a tiny footprint in terms of habitat, the species is maintained by three ‘maternity caves’, and it has just won what many consider to be the most important election of the year: 2022 Mammal of the Year.

Run by COSMOS science magazine www.cosmosmagazine.com as a fun way to showcase our extraordinary and diverse wildlife, the southern bent-wing bat has risen above more than 370 distinct Aussies, after a wildly popular election which drew more than 50,000 votes from around the world.

“The always controversial dingo came in a close second, and it’s fair to say the whole campaign across the past couple of months has been an absolute eye-opener for me and for many,” notes COSMOS editor Gail MacCallum.

“I have to confess that not so many weeks ago, I didn’t even know about the southern bent-wing bat and now I care about it. And that’s kind of the point of the whole thing. You can’t help a fellow-Aussie if you don’t know about their battles and, let’s not beat around the bush, we’ve been killing our mates for too long.

“During the short eight weeks we’ve been running this competition, another three mammals have been shifted onto the threatened list. It has to stop and that involves us starting the pushback for them, with better protection laws. They live nowhere else and once they’re gone, they’re lost forever.”

WHAT WE LEARNED DURING THE MAMMAL OF THE YEAR EVENT …

• Aussies care about their mammals, and not just the cute ones. The voting and social media support was sustained and passionate. Scrutineers had to be called in to ensure the integrity of the vote, such was the backing of various ‘tribes’. Pin-up stars the koala and the kangaroo did not even make the Top Ten.
• During the course of the Mammal of the Year event, the federal government released the long-awaited (and previously delayed) State of the Environment report. It underlined that we actually need to be pro-active to change the feared fate of many of our most precious animals. The clock continues to tick, ever louder.