Hundreds of flying foxes have taken up roost in trees along Ploughmans Lane, just in time for the start of the cherry picking season.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The now-annual migration of the bats has put orchardists on alert with cherries ripe to pick.
Orchardist Guy Gaeta said the bats should be culled as they were a "vermin."
While Mr Gaeta said he had not seen any at his Canobolas property but he had been looking out for them.
"I've been looking every day and I've been dreading the day they come," he said.
"It's going to be a heartache. They just come in and pick the best ones [cherries] off the top. It is not on."
Mr Gaeta said farmers were already suffering from the drought and a lack of water.
He said the state government should re-introduce a subsidised netting scheme to help farmers.
Mr Gaeta said about 70 per cent of his crop was protected by netting.
He said he started picking a new variety of cherries on Sunday which was about a week earlier than normal.
"Considering the conditions, and most orchardists haven't got the water [the crop] is not too bad," he said.
Thornbrook Orchard's Paula Charnock said they started picking on the weekend. "With the drought we have a lighter to medium crop compared to last year," she said.
Mrs Charnock said she had not seen any bats at the Nashdale orchard this season.
A WIRES bat expert Storm Stanford said the flying foxes were on the move earlier this year due to a shortage of food in northern NSW and south east Queensland caused by the drought, bushfires and tree culling.
Ms Stanford said there were many bats on the NSW south coast from the Illawarra down to Bega at the moment.
"That is quite unusual for this time of year," she said.
Ms Stanford said small camps had also been seen near Cowra and Goulburn.
"There will be animals around the central western area," she said.
Ms Stanford said it was likely there would be less bats around this season due to the conditions.
"It is highly unlikely their numbers are increasing. It is more likely to be dropping," Ms Stanford said.
It led Orange City Council to consider ways of moving them but a report found the likely methods were expensive and unlikely to be successful.
DO YOU WANT MORE ORANGE NEWS?
- Receive our free newsletters delivered to your inbox, as well as breaking news alerts. Sign up below ...
David Fitzsimons
I am a senior journalist at the Central Western Daily concentrating on council, government and real estate issues. Before moving to Orange I filled senior roles at the Daily Telegraph, Daily Telegraph-Mirror and the Daily Mirror in Sydney. They included being an editor, news editor, chief of staff and reporter.
I am a senior journalist at the Central Western Daily concentrating on council, government and real estate issues. Before moving to Orange I filled senior roles at the Daily Telegraph, Daily Telegraph-Mirror and the Daily Mirror in Sydney. They included being an editor, news editor, chief of staff and reporter.
