Forest bats include both megabats (Megachiroptera) and microbats (Microchiroptera). The diet of megabats consists of nectar, pollen and fruit, while microbats mostly feed on insects, although some species supplement these with small vertebrates. Forest bats form the largest percentage (70%) of the total bat assemblage in Australia. This can be greater when you include bats that utilise both caves and trees.

A range of roosting sites are utilised by forest bats. These can be split into three main types - tree roosting, hollow roosting and other roosts.

Tree roosting is the most simple and involves animals congregating in 'camps' in trees where animals hang from the trees branches. Almost all species of Flying Fox are tree roosting and can congregate in tens of thousands but the size of the camp depends heavily on available food sources and the season. It is not uncommon for camps to be occupied by more then one species of Flying Fox. Blossom Bats and Tube-nosed Fruit Bats are tree roosting although they do not have permanent camps, roosting alone or in small groups, partially camouflaged to look like a dead leaf. They also tend to change roosting sites daily.

Some species of forest bat have taken to utilising other habitats. The Golden-tipped Bat is known to utilise the nest of scrub-wrens and gerygones. These nests are done shaped structures made of shredded bark, lichens and mosses and suspended from branches and vines. Golden-tipped Bats will also roost in dense vegetation while the Flute-nosed Bats roost in epiphytic ferns in rainforest trees.

Forest bats are also known to roost in houses and other man-made habitats that can sometimes substitute for tree hollows where none are available. Some bat species are known to roost in both caves and tree hollows, depending on seasons and availability of roosting sites. However, for many forest bats their preferred roosting habitats and requirements are not known.