'Ugly mammals' fail to catch the eye of scientists, study shows

Pushed out of the limelight by cuddly koalas and kangaroos, Australia's less glamorous native bats and rodents have failed to catch the eyes of scientific researchers, a new study shows.

Just 11 percent of scientific studies on Australian wildlife since 1901 have looked at native bats and rodents, although they make up 45 percent of all species, says the study published in the Mammal Review Journal.

Australia has already had some unique bat species become extinct and there is a risk more could follow without anyone noticing, said Trish Fleming, a wildlife biologist from Murdoch University.