6:16 PM
Charles
I heard a lot about Monfort Bat Colony at the Monfort Bat Cave is a Guinness Book of World Record holder of the largest colony of fruit eating bats (Geoffrey’s Rousette Fruit Bat) in the world!
I live just a few kilometers away and this is the first time that I have ever seen a colony of bats that numbered up to 1.8 million in just one colony. There are a lot of caves in and around the Island of Samal. But only this cave is inhabited by bats as what the local people said.
The cave is inside a private lot owned by Iñigo-Monfort family and was named after the owner Norma Monfort. The cave was once used by Filipinos during the World War 2 as a hiding place and protection of against aerial bombing. No one knows why bats now inhabits the cave.
The place is open from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. daily!
You can now view the bat cave from the outside. No one is allowed to enter the cave because the bats are nocturnal in nature and they sleep in the morning and thus will be bothered by the noise that they will make when they are allowed inside the cave. Once they are startled by the noise they will fly and some bats are carrying their babies in their armpits. Once they fly their babies will fall and their population will decrease.
From the entrance of the caves as there are around three entrances, we can see the bats by the hundreds of thousands and just by seeing them is an experience in itself. It ‘s a must see Samal Island tour experience you shouldn’t miss.
Getting there is easy, you can take a bus going to Samal Island from Sta. Ana Port area and upon arriving on the island you can take a ‘Habal-habal’(motorbike) going there.
Thanks to Olan Fernadez Ombruscado of The Travel Teller for organizing the tour.
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