The fur colour is darker above, usually a shade of grey brown that is paler at the ventral side; the species is recorded in Queensland with rufous to orange coloration across the pelage.

[1] The species is common in suitable habitat in Eastern Australia, from the tropical regions of Cape York Peninsula along the east coast and inland to the Great Dividing Range as far south as the more temperate climate of Victoria.

[5] The range of R. megaphyllus extended westward in Victoria during the twentieth century, aided by colonisation of abandoned mine adits,[1] and local populations are dependent on the availability of suitable daytime refuge and maternity roosts.

Caves and similar sites that provide adequate warmth and high humidity are preferred and may be inhabited by groups numbering up to two thousand, however, the colony size is more often between five and fifty bats.

Separate maternity sites are occupied for the birth and rearing of young, beginning in September or October and departing to rejoin males for mating in March or April.

[5] The IUCN Red List has assessed the conservation status of R. megaphyllus as least concern, as occurring in protected areas and occupying abandoned mine shafts, and lack of evidence in any significant decline; the trajectory of the population is however unknown.