![\"\"](\"http:\/\/batsinbeds.files.wordpress.com\/2011\/07\/barbastelle-aug-5th-2011-4.jpg\" "\\"Barbastelle-aug-5th-2011--4\\"")
<\/a>Photo Bob Cornes<\/p><\/div>\n
<\/a>Photo Bob Cornes<\/p><\/div>\n
Barbastelles are unique amongst British bats in that their ears join at the top of their head. They have a large triangular tragus. They weigh 6 to 8 g. Their dorsal fur is black brown and may have a frosted appearance. Their ventral fur is grey . Their body is between 45 and 55mm in length. they have been known to live for more than 20 years.<\/p>\n
Their eyes are set near their ears and can be difficult to make out. Some people say they are ugly bats and describe them a “pug faced”. We will not hear of it.<\/p>\n
It is said they derive their name from the Italian for Star beard and the bat in the top photo certainly have shaggy fur under her chin.<\/p>\n
Barbastelles have a very distinctive call , once heard never forgotten<\/p>\n
<\/a>Photo Bob Cornes<\/p><\/div>\n
They are fast, agile flyers and specialist foragers in a range of habitats, swooping to drink from ponds or lakes. The ones we have found have mainly been in an area with a good understorey<\/p>\n
They emerge from their roosts early and\u00a0 will feed close to home before setting off on long fights to other feeding grounds.\u00a0\u00a0 We have tracked individuals flying over\u00a0\u00a05 <\/span>km to feed. Each member \u00a0of the colony has its own feeding territory .<\/p>\n In summer they often emerge early from their daytime roosts to forage in the dark zone amongst trees until open area light levels have fallen to those existing under tree canopies; then they may forage in quite open areas, and will frequently cross fields once night has fallen.<\/p>\n We now have records of barbastelle throughout the county, though the population density is low.<\/p>\n Photo Toby Thorne<\/p><\/div>\n These rare bats have been an obsession for the bat group for a number of years since we helped the Cambridgeshire bat group look for roosts at Wimpole. Since then we have located a number of roosts of our own following a mist netting and radiotagging programme<\/p>\n Read the article we wrote for the Bedfordshire Natural History Society about the2005 2005 Barbastelle Radiotracking (BNHS)<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The barbastelle is a UK Biologial Diversity Action Plan Species. for more\u00a0 information visit http:\/\/jncc.defra.gov.uk\/default.aspx?page=5155<\/a>.<\/p>\n We first found barbastelles during hibernation checks, but it was a long time before we found them roosting. They are not always easy to spot as they hide deep in cracks. Sometimes we do find them on the surface<\/p>\n Photo Danuel Hargreaves<\/p><\/div>\n We find more barbastelles than almost anywhere else in the country, but we can’t begin to match the numbers found in Polish hibernacula.<\/p>\n In 2005 we started working with the North Bucks Bat Group looking for, and finding, barbastelles on the Bucks\/Beds border and in Beds itself.<\/span><\/p>\n In 2006 we mistnetted some barbastelles in the north-west of the county<\/span> but did not radiotrack them. The hunt is not over, but we got sidetracked into searching for serotines.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n In 2009 we caught several males in mist nets and found an<\/span> autumn swarming site which included Barbastelles in the swarm. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n In 2011 we found two more woods with barbastelles in them but were unable to catch \u00a0the females we wanted to radiotrack,<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n I 2017 we helped the Herts and Middlesx Bat Group on their successful quest to find barbastelles<\/p>\n For a barbastelle quest of your own, follow these links :<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.bio.bris.ac.uk\/research\/bats\/britishbats\/index.htm<\/a><\/p>\n http:\/\/www.bats.org.uk\/pages\/uk_bat_species.html<\/a> Created April 2009 Last updated April 2018 Barbastellus barbastellus (Schreber 1774) Barbastelles are unique amongst British bats in that their ears join at the top of their head. They have a large triangular tragus. They weigh 6 to 8 g. … Continue reading <\/a>They will often change roosts every few days, They usually roost in loose bark peeling off trees. Such roosts are often short-lived and a major consideration n managing woodlands for barbastelles is making sure there is an ongoing supply of trees with lifting bark.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>More information<\/span><\/h2>\n
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