Pipistrelle Survey

(c)Bob Cornes

The Bedfordshire Bat Group has been monitoring this soprano pipistrelle maternity roost in Mid Beds for a number of years.

We're always on the look out for more pair of eyes and ears. No specialised equipment or previous experience is needed. You don't need to be a world authority on bat biology. You'll quickly develop the skills needed and you'd help us to learn more about Bedfordshire's bats.

This year we will meet on alternate Thursdays at about ten minutes before sunset.

Dates and Times for 2008

Month	Date	Start Time
Apr	Thu 3rd	7.45m
	Thu 17th	8.10pm
May	Thu 1st	8.30pm
	Thu 15th	8.50pm
	Thu 29th	9.00pm
Jun	Thu 12th	9.05pm
	Thu 26th	9.10pm
Jul	Thu10th	9.10pm
	Thu 24 th	8.50pm
Aug	Thu 7th	8.30pm
	Thu 21st	8.00pm
Sep	Thu 4th	7.00pm
	Thu 18th	6.40pm

Click here if you would like to see some analysis of the data we have collected.This is the largest known roost in Bedfordshire and at its peak you can expect to get a really good view of some 500 bats, though numbers have fallen in recent years

In addition you will also see Daubenton's and Noctules. These used to roost in a nearby tree which was brought down by a storm. The bats are still around and in 2005 we got frustratingly close to locating the new roost.

Some background

2005

For some, 2005 highspot of the year was the sight of a sparrowhawk sitting on the guttering waiting to pick off bats as they emerged. Click here for an account of this and other highlights. Volume 69 (April 2005) of the newsletter has another article by Derek on this survey.

2006

The sparrowhawk was back and the bats fooled us by finding new emergence points. Click here for more details. Yet again we failed to locate the Daubenton and Noctule roost

After a quiet start bat numbers increased . but maybe they had been there all the time. Click here for Derek's account of events

2007

Red faces all round when we realised that while we were watching one roost exit they had found two more. We think they had only being using these new exits for a short peiod before we spotted what they were up to. (These new exit points are inevitably best viewed from the midst of a thicket of nettles)

Want to know more?

Contact details for Soggy are in the newsletter.

For insurance reasons this survey is only open to bat group members, and at the owner's request numbers are limited.

envelope email us at batsinbeds@fsmail.net

Other activities

Click here for a full list of other activities you could get involved with