Nature will always fill a void. If the bats are killed others will simply arrive over time to roost in the trees unless a more attractive alternative is provided. If or when the colony re-establishes itself in the future, the Gardens will simply call for yet another mass kill. Killing the bats would therefore be a cruel and futile attempt to resolve this issue. Animal welfare groups are now hoping that the arrival of this cold weather will mean a reprieve for the bats.
Thousands are now likely to migrate up the east coast.
The task for the Gardens manager and the DNRE and Parks Victoria is to ensure a secure habitat when they return. The equivalent Victorian SAC advised Minister Sheryl Garbutt that the Flying-foxes should be listed as 'threatened' under the Victorian Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act. The Minister rejected it's advice. The Flying-foxes are threatened due to habitat loss along the Eastern seaboard of Australia.