National Bat Monitoring Programme
The National Bat Monitoring Programme (NBMP) was launched in 1996 and consists of a number of national, annual surveys carried out by a network of volunteers across the UK. The NBMP is a partnership between Bat Conservation Trust (BCT), Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC), Defra and Natural Resources Wales (NRW). Natural England (NE) also contribute to the programme.
BCT runs NBMP surveys aimed at beginners as well as experts, and their current surveys include the Sunset/Sunrise survey, Field Survey, Waterway Survey, Roost Count, Hibernation Survey, Woodland Survey and Nathusius’ Pipistrelle Survey. The results from these surveys are compiled into an annual report, available to view on the BCT website. [3] Currently, statistically robust trends are produced for 11 of the UK’s 17 breeding species.
NBMP data support and inform conservation action and key government biodiversity and monitoring and reporting including UK and country biodiversity strategies, [4] the Habitats Directive [5] and the UN Eurobats agreement. [6] NBMP data from selected species are used to produce one of the annual UK Biodiversity Indicators, high-level measures which are used to report on progress towards meeting goals and targets for the conservation of biological diversity. [7]
Nathusius' pipistrelle Bat Survey
In 2009, as part of the National Bat Monitoring Programme, BCT began the first systematic UK-wide survey of Nathusius’ pipistrelles in order to improve knowledge of the distribution of this species. Nathusius’ pipistrelle is considered to be rare in the UK but is widespread and may be under-recorded in some areas. As this species is often found at large water bodies, particularly during the autumn migration period, the survey involves surveying lakes twice during September, and making audio recordings from broadband bat detectors in order to verify Nathusius’ pipistrelle calls through sonogram analysis.
Although data gained from the survey are still quite limited, there are indications that Nathusius' pipistrelle may be relatively widespread across lakes in some regions in the autumn. From results up to 2013 Greater London showed the highest percentage of sites with analysed recordings that had verified records (83.3%) followed by North East (69.2%), Northern Ireland (57.1%) and East of England (50%). [8] All other regions had at least three sites with confirmed recordings of Nathusius’ pipistrelle. As of 2013, 192 volunteers have taken part and 230 sites have been surveyed. BCT encourages its members and volunteers to take part, particularly in areas where there are gaps in survey coverage, and the necessary equipment for the survey can be borrowed from their office.
The tricolored bat or American perimyotis is a species of microbat native to eastern North America. Formerly known as the eastern pipistrelle, based on the incorrect belief that it was closely related to European Pipistrellus species, the closest known relative of the tricolored bat is now recognized as the canyon bat. Its common name "tricolored bat" derives from the coloration of the hairs on its back, which have three distinct color bands. It is the smallest bat species in the eastern and midwestern US, with individuals weighing only 4.6–7.9 g (0.16–0.28 oz). This species mates in the fall before hibernation, though due to sperm storage, females do not become pregnant until the spring. Young are born helpless, though rapidly develop, flying and foraging for themselves by four weeks old. It has a relatively long lifespan, and can live nearly fifteen years.
The European Bat Night is a popular, annual event to draw public awareness to threatened bat populations in Europe. It is hosted by local nature conservation organisations and attracts a number of ecologically interested people, families, and children. Depending on the local contributors, there are species exhibitions, presentations, workshops for constructing bat houses, and bat walks at night time.
The lesser horseshoe bat is a type of small European and North African insectivorous bat, related to its larger cousin, the greater horseshoe bat. As with all horseshoe bats, the species gets its name from its distinctive horseshoe-shaped noseleaf.
Browne's Folly, or Brown's Folly, is a folly tower sitting within a 39.9 hectare biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) near the English village of Bathford in Somerset, notified in 1974: the site itself is known as the Farleigh Down Stone Quarry and is managed as a nature reserve by the Avon Wildlife Trust (AWT). The tower was built in 1848 and is a Grade II listed building.
The western barbastelle, also known as the barbastelle or barbastelle bat, is a European bat in the genus Barbastella. This species is found from Portugal to Azerbaijan and from Sweden to Canary Islands, where a sub-species was identified. It has a short nose, small eyes and wide ears. The conservation status of B. barbastellus is assessed as "near threatened", "vulnerable", "critically endangered" or "extinct" in various parts of its range.
The soprano pipistrelle is a small species of bat. It is found in Europe and often roosts on buildings.
Savi's pipistrelle is a species of vesper bat found across North West Africa, the Mediterranean region and the Middle East. It feeds at night on flying insects. In the summer it roosts under bark, in holes in trees, in old buildings and in rock crevices but in winter it prefers roosts where the temperature is more even such as caves, underground vaults and deep rock cracks.
Nathusius' pipistrelle is a small bat in the genus Pipistrellus. It is very similar to the common pipistrelle and has been overlooked in many areas until recently but it is widely distributed across Europe. It was described by two German naturalists, Alexander Keyserling and Johann Heinrich Blasius, and named by them after Hermann von Nathusius, in gratitude for his support of their research.
Livingstone's fruit bat, also called the Comoro flying fox, is a megabat in the genus Pteropus. It is an Old World fruit bat found only in the Anjouan and Mohéli islands in the Union of the Comoros in the western Indian Ocean.
The canyon bat, also known as the western pipistrelle, or American parastrelle is a species of vesper bat. It is found in Mexico and in the western United States. The species has historically been placed in the genus Pipistrellus, but molecular evidence does not show any close relationship with that genus, and accordingly it was classified into its own genus, Parastrellus, in 2006.
The Rodrigues flying fox or Rodrigues fruit bat is a species of bat in the family Pteropodidae, the flying foxes or fruit bats. It is endemic to Rodrigues, an island in the Indian Ocean belonging to Mauritius. Its natural habitat is tropical lowland forests. The bats are sociable, roost in large groups during the day and feed at night, squeezing the juice and flesh out of fruits. They are hunted by humans for food and their numbers have been dwindling, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated the species as being "endangered". In an effort to preserve them from extinction, some bats have been caught and are being bred in various zoos around the world.
The Agreement on the Conservation of Populations of European Bats, or EUROBATS, is an international treaty that binds its States Parties on the conservation of bats in their territories. It was signed in 1991 under the auspices of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS), with the Agreement entering into force in 1994. In August 2021, the Agreement applied to 38 of 63 range states.
The Christmas Island pipistrelle is an extinct species of vesper bat that was found only on Christmas Island, Australia. The last individual bat was seen in August 2009 with no further sightings despite intensive efforts to locate it.
Roanhead refers to the limestone outcrop of Roanhead Crag in Cumbria and the farmland behind it, but in recent years the term has been taken to mean the sandy beaches adjoining Sandscale Haws extending to Snab Point. The Irish Sea lies to the west of Roanhead, whilst the Duddon Estuary and Walney Channel are due north and south respectively. The beach is noted for its abundance of sand dunes and strong, often dangerous coastal currents. Today the beach is a National Trust conservation area, and a two-mile stretch of the Cumbria Coastal Way runs through it.
Peoples Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) is a charitable organisation registered in England and Wales. It exists to promote the conservation of rare or declining species and habitats in the UK and worldwide through monitoring, public engagement, education, and through the funding of conservation projects and research. It also owns and manages two nature reserves. As of April 2015, PTES has 16 employees, five trustees and coordinates around 24,000 volunteers in the UK. PTES relies on donations from the general public and grants from trusts and foundations to continue its work - it receives no core funding from the UK Government. The organisation has registered charity number 274206.
The Devon Bat Group (DBG) was founded in 1984 to help protect bats and their habitats, to look after injured bats and to advise and educate people about bats.
The Mediterranean long-eared bat, also known as Kolombatovic's long-eared bat, is a species of vesper bat ranging from Italy east through the Balkans east to Syria, and south to Jordan.
Vincent Wildlife Trust (VWT) was founded in 1975 by the late Honourable Vincent Weir. It is a charity that focuses on mammal conservation in Britain and Ireland. Its Head Office is in Herefordshire, with local offices in south-west England, Wales and Ireland.
A maternity colony refers to a temporary association of reproductive female bats for giving birth to, nursing, and weaning their pups. The colonies are initiated by pregnant bats. After giving birth, the colony consists of the lactating females and their offspring. After weaning, juveniles will leave the maternity colony, and the colony itself will break apart. The size of a maternity colony is highly variable by species, with some species forming colonies consisting of ten or fewer individuals, while the largest maternity colony in the world in Bracken Cave is estimated to have over 15 million bats.
