Location: | Barangay Tambo, Babak District, Island Garden City of Samal, Davao del Norte. |
Open: |
No restrictions. [2012] |
Fee: |
free. [2012] |
Classification: | Karst Cave |
Light: | bring torch |
Dimension: | |
Guided tours: | |
Photography: | |
Accessibility: | |
Bibliography: | |
Address: | Monfort Bat Cave. |
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Monfort Bat Cave is located in the small town Tambo on Mawes island or Samal island off the coast of Mindanao island. There is a bus from Davao City to Babal on the island, the cave can be reached by motorcycle taxi, locally known as habal-habal. All habal-habal drivers know the place.
The cave is actually not accessible, a 350 m long passage with numerous openings to the surface which are fenced. From the febce the cave walls can be seen, covered by millions of Old World fruit bats, also known as Geoffroy's Rousettes. They are coating the walls, hanging very closely together at all possible places. The colony is estimated to consist of some 2.4 million bats, which makes it the largest colony of Geoffroy's Rousettes in the world. This was mentioned in the 2010 edition of the Guinness Book of World Records.
The cave is named after the Monfort family who owns the land. Norma Monfort is the founder and president of the Monfort Bat Cave and Conservation Foundation. The bats have been hunted on the island, some of the other caves on the island have been destroyed, so only this colony lives undisturbed. The bats are important for the rainforest because they feed on harmful insects, pollinate plants, and distribute seeds. The Geoffroy's Rousettes are credited for the abundance of durian trees in Davao City, which is actually not really a good thing for everybody.