The species was previously thought to be extinct due to three common threats. The first was overharvesting for meat due to its large size. The second was deforestation, which was inevitable because of the growing human population. The last factor was the lack of protection for the habitat of this species, except for a few minor areas in the Carmen municipality.
Climate change may disrupt breeding seasons and affect the limited habitat of the species and it may also be threatened by low
genetic diversity due to the
population bottleneck that occurs at low population density. In the Carmen municipality on Cebu Island the local government has formed a group of environmental protection coordinators who patrol and report violations in the habitat of the Philippines naked backed fruit bat. The duty of these coordinators is to survey cave "sanctuaries", as named by the municipal government, and report changes in the habitat and hunting of bats. A reforestation project is underway as well. Many other towns are following in Carmen's footsteps by becoming proactive in saving this bat. There is also a law that applies to both of the islands, which is the Republic Act 9147 or the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act. This Act, among other objectives, conserves and protects wildlife and their habitat. This species is also known as a
flagship species in many areas in which it lives. ==References==