Students will be able to articulate what a fruit bat is, identify and explain the fruit bat’s role in the American Samoan tropical rainforest ecosystem, and the National Park of American Samoa’s role in protecting fruit bats. Background Large flying foxes, also known as fruit bats, are one of the more unusual animals in American Samoa, especially for visitors from areas where bats are small and rarely seen. Three species inhabit our islands – two large fruit bats ( Pteropus samoensis , P. tonganus ) and a small insect-eating bat ( Emballonura semicaudata ). These three are the only native mamm Duration: 30 Minutes.