Ku-ring-gai is home to an important maternal colony of the Grey-headed Flying-fox, located in the Ku-ring-gai Flying-fox Reserve, Gordon. The colony consists on average of about 30,000 to 40,000 bats during summer. During the winter months the population may drop to a few dozen bats or even no bats at all as they leave the reserve to feed on flowering trees elsewhere in NSW or as far north as Queensland.
The Ku-ring-gai Flying-fox Reserve includes a variety of wildlife habitats and contains an important maternal colony of the Grey-headed Flying-fox, listed as Vulnerable under both the Federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 and the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995.
The Reserve also contains Sydney Turpentine Ironbark Forest, an Endangered Ecological Community (EEC) under the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995, and other vulnerable species such as the Powerful Owl .The reserve is Council’s only bushland reserve specifically managed for the conservation of a threatened fauna species. The KFFR is adjacent to Stoney Creek in Gordon, covering a total area of approximately 15.34 hectares, which incorporates an additional 0.44 hectares of land added to the Reserve in 2007.
Council, in conjunction with the Ku-ring-gai Bat Conservation Society have been undertaking works or employing bush regeneration contractors to control weeds, plant canopy species and carry out other habitat restoration and maintenance programs continuously since the mid 1980s
The Habitat Restoration Project was commenced in 1987 by the Ku-ring-gai Bat Conservation Society Inc. (then known as the Ku-ring-gai Bat Colony Committee Inc.) which manages the Project on behalf of Ku-ring-gai Municipal Council. Before commencing the project the weed infestation on the north facing slope, which is primarily used by the Flying-foxes, was particularly dense The dominant weeds were Privet and Lantana along with vines reaching the canopy and a ground cover of Wandering Jew (Tradescantia albiflora). The weed association was preventing the germination of native seed and if left without management the senescent native tree canopy would not be replaced. Many of the trees were in fact dead or dying. It was apparent that if the colony was to remain at this site the existing native vegetation would need to recover and the weeds would have to be removed to allow regeneration of new canopy trees. This was a matter of urgency.
Contract staff and volunteers undertake the habitat restoration project works. The community contribution of volunteer bush regenerators and public donations enabled the Society to obtain a series of grants from the NSW and Commonwealth governments to employ contract bush regenerators. Volunteers are registered under Ku-ring-gai Municipal Council’s Community Bushcare Service and supervised on site by the Ku-ring-gai Bat Conservation Society. During the project a variety of techniques have been used and assessed to improve the effectiveness of the project.