Southern bat 'recovering'

A rare bat is on its way to recovery after successful large-scale predator control in Fiordland, according to a new science report.

The New Zealand threat classification system report, released last week,  looks at the conservation status of New Zealand bats and is an update from the last review in 2012.

The most significant change is that the southern short-tailed bat has moved from ‘‘threatened’’ to ‘‘recovering’’ - due to the Department of Conservation’s control of rats, possums and stoats in its last mainland habitat.

But the picture is not as good for bats in other areas, particularly the North Island. 

The status of long-tailed bats is ‘‘nationally critical’’.