Distribution
The Angolan Free-tailed Bat has a broad distribution across much of sub-Saharan Africa, occurring across a range of habitat types (Skinner & Chimimba 2005). Its range extends from Senegal, The Gambia and Mali in the west, to Sudan, Ethiopia and Somalia in the east; southwards as far as eastern South Africa and Swaziland and is largely absent from the Congo basin (Monadjem et al. 2016). It has not been recorded from Namibia (ACR 2015). Within the assessment region, it has been recorded from KwaZulu-Natal, Swaziland, and through the Kruger National Park, from where its range extends to Zimbabwe, northern Botswana, Zambia, Malawi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, eastern Angola and Mozambique (Monadjem et al. 2010). Estimated extent of occurrence in the assessment region is 192,716 km2.
Population trend
Trend
The species is considered globally common (ACR 2015), and is abundant within its range across eastern South Africa (Monadjem et al. 2010). This species roosts communally in groups ranging from just a few individuals to thousands (Monadjem et al. 2010).
Threats
No major species-specific threats have been identified for this species. However, they are likely to be vulnerable to pressures identified for other bat species. With wind energy potential moving into parts of KwaZulu-Natal, this could pose a future threat to the Angolan Free-tailed Bat as it is an open-air forager (Baerwald et al. 2008; Cryan & Barclay 2009; Rydell et al. 2010; Rollins et al. 2012). Bats are attracted to wind farm sites which often tend to have higher insect densities. When bats fly near to turbine blades, they either collide directly with the blade or they experience barotrauma. Barotrauma is tissue damage caused by rapid excessive changes in air pressure near turbine blades (Baerwald et al. 2008; Rydell et al. 2010). Additionally, this species may face persecution when roosting within the roofs and crevices of buildings (Monadjem et al. 2016). As this species often roosts in caves, it may face the threat of human disturbance, as many local traditional ceremonies and tourism activities take place in caves.
