We're pleased to report that Graham Checkley worked with us in early September to carry out a bat activity survey of the Community Woodland.
Graham recently sent us this update -
"Why study bats? Well, to quote the Bat Conservation Trust, "Bats are a vital part of our native wildlife... They can tell us a lot about the state of the environment, as they are top predators of common nocturnal insects and are sensitive to changes in land use practices.". But for me there is also the excitement of watching them flutter across the darkening sky, and the sheer detective work of finding out what they are up to.
From Nev I was already aware of potential bat hot spots within the community woodland, so I just needed to walk around the site and decide where to deploy my bat detectors. I settled on 2 places, the clearing on the east side of the Fawn Wood and the wooden bridge over the Speedy Burn, as they seemed likely to attract a different mix of bat species. Bats will often follow linear features when they are commuting or feeding, and the woodland clearing seemed to provide a delightfully sheltered woodland edge. By contrast the Speedy Burn snakes through the southern part of the community woodland and some bats will choose to feed along streams.
I deployed my Anabat express bat detectors for 7 days at these 2 locations. The express works pretty much like a hand-held bat detector, but they have the advantage of recording and time-stamping all of the recordings for subsequent analysis. This allows you to identify the species present, quantify the recordings and study the pattern of overnight activity. You can also be at home enjoying a G&T while the detectors are hard at work!
I'm pleased to report that both locations had above average bat activity and 3 species present (Common Pipistrelle, Soprano Pipistrelle [see image below] and a Myotis species, probably Daubenton's). As I suspected most of the Myotis activity was along the Speedy Burn, no mean feat in a rather cluttered environment, while the woodland edge was the place preferred by the Pipistrelle species.
Most importantly bats were recorded emerging at or before sunset, particularly on the edge of the Fawn Wood. This suggests that the bats are roosting in the immediate vicinity, and some of the pre-dawn activity suggests possible swarming activity before heading away to roost.
In practice this means endoscope checks for bat roosts before tree work, and local householders should watch out for emerging bats. You may have some unsuspected lodgers!"
Soprano Pipistrelle
