Editing Megabat (section)

===Diet and foraging===
[[File:Eye contact with flying fox.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|alt=A flying fox with reddish-yellow fur and a dark brown snout is in flight facing the viewer. The background is white.|[[Indian flying fox]] (''Pteropus medius'') in flight]]
Most megabats are primarily [[frugivore|frugivorous]].<ref name="Dumont"/> Throughout the family, a diverse array of fruit is consumed from nearly 188 plant genera.<ref name="Yin"/> Some species are also [[nectarivore|nectarivorous]], meaning that they also drink nectar from flowers.<ref name="Dumont">{{cite journal|doi=10.1644/BOS-107|title=Food Hardness and Feeding Behavior in Old World Fruit Bats (Pteropodidae)|journal=Journal of Mammalogy|volume=85|pages=8–14|year=2004|last1=Dumont|first1=E. R.|last2=O'Neal|first2=R.|s2cid=27275791|doi-access=free}}</ref> In Australia, ''[[Eucalyptus]]'' flowers are an especially important food source.<ref name="Nelson"/> Other food resources include leaves, shoots, buds, pollen, seed pods, sap, cones, bark, and twigs.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1046/j.1365-2907.1998.00033.x|title=Dietary strategies of Old World Fruit Bats (Megachiroptera, Pteropodidae): How do they obtain sufficient protein?|journal=[[Mammal Review]]|volume=28|issue=4|pages=185–194|year=1998|last1=Courts|first1=S. E.|doi-access=free|bibcode=1998MamRv..28..185C }}</ref> They are prodigious eaters and can consume up to 2.5 times their own body weight in fruit per night.<ref name="Yin">{{cite journal|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0146274|pmid=26735303|pmc=4703304|title=Molecular Evolution of the Nuclear Factor (Erythroid-Derived 2)-Like 2 Gene Nrf2 in Old World Fruit Bats (Chiroptera: Pteropodidae)|journal=PLOS ONE|volume=11|issue=1|page=e0146274|year=2016|last1=Yin|first1=Q.|last2=Zhu|first2=L.|last3=Liu|first3=D.|last4=Irwin|first4=D. M.|last5=Zhang|first5=S.|last6=Pan|first6=Y.|bibcode=2016PLoSO..1146274Y|doi-access=free}}</ref>

Megabats fly to roosting and foraging resources. They typically fly straight and relatively fast for bats; some species are slower with greater maneuverability. Species can commute {{cvt|20-50|km|mi}} in a night. [[animal migration|Migratory species]] of the genera ''Eidolon'', ''Pteropus'', ''Epomophorus'', ''Rousettus'', ''Myonycteris'', and ''Nanonycteris'' can migrate distances up to {{cvt|750|km|mi}}. Most megabats have below-average [[Bat flight#Aspect ratio|aspect ratios]],<ref name=Norberg1987>{{cite journal |author1=Norberg, U.M.  |author2=Rayner, J.M.V.  |name-list-style=amp | date = 1987 | title = Ecological morphology and flight in bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera): wing adaptations, flight performance, foraging strategy and echolocation | journal = Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B  | volume = 316 | issue = 1179 | pages = 382–383 | doi = 10.1098/rstb.1987.0030|bibcode=1987RSPTB.316..335N }}</ref> which is measurement relating wingspan and wing area.<ref name=Norberg1987/>{{rp|348}} Wing loading, which measures weight relative to wing area,<ref name=Norberg1987/>{{rp|348}} is average or higher than average in megabats.<ref name=Norberg1987/>

====Seed dispersal====
Megabats play an important role in [[seed dispersal]]. As a result of their long evolutionary history, some plants have evolved characteristics compatible with bat senses, including fruits that are strongly scented, brightly colored, and prominently exposed away from foliage. The bright colors and positioning of the fruit may reflect megabats' reliance on visual cues and inability to navigate through clutter. In a study that examined the fruits of more than forty fig species, only one fig species was consumed by both birds and megabats; most species are consumed by one or the other. Bird-consumed figs are frequently red or orange, while megabat-consumed figs are often yellow or green.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1111/j.1744-7429.2003.tb00606.x|title=Fruit Bats (Chiroptera: Pteropodidae) as Seed Dispersers and Pollinators in a Lowland Malaysian Rain Forest1|journal=[[Biotropica]]|volume=35|issue=4|pages=491–502|year=2003|last1=Hodgkison|first1=R. |last2=Balding|first2=S. T.|last3=Zubaid|first3=A. |last4=Kunz|first4=T. H.|bibcode=2003Biotr..35..491H |s2cid=86327074}}</ref> Most seeds are excreted shortly after consumption due to a rapid gut transit time, but some seeds can remain in the gut for more than twelve hours. This heightens megabats' capacity to disperse seeds far from parent trees.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1098/rspb.1999.0625|pmc=1689670|title=Old World fruit bats can be long-distance seed dispersers through extended retention of viable seeds in the gut|journal=[[Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences]]|volume=266|issue=1416|pages=219–223|year=1999|last1=Shilton|first1=L. A.|last2=Altringham|first2=J. D.|last3=Compton|first3=S. G.|last4=Whittaker|first4=R. J.}}</ref> As highly mobile frugivores, megabats have the capacity to restore forest between isolated forest fragments by dispersing tree seeds to deforested landscapes.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/j.gecco.2015.02.012|title=High-resolution GPS tracking reveals habitat selection and the potential for long-distance seed dispersal by Madagascan flying foxes Pteropus rufus|journal=Global Ecology and Conservation|volume=3|page=690|year=2015|last1=Oleksy|first1=R. |last2=Racey|first2=P. A.|last3=Jones|first3=G.|doi-access=free|bibcode=2015GEcoC...3..678O }}</ref> This dispersal ability is limited to plants with small seeds that are less than {{cvt|4|mm|in}} in length, as seeds larger than this are not ingested.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/j.gecco.2017.04.007|title=Frugivory and seed dispersal by vertebrates in tropical and subtropical Asia: An update|journal=Global Ecology and Conservation|volume=11|page=13|year=2017|last1=Corlett|first1=R. T.|doi-access=free|bibcode=2017GEcoC..11....1C }}</ref>