Visitor Experience Officer Laura returns for week two of the Strumpshaw Fen A to Z. This week, she is focusing on another often disregarded part of nature; bats.
Bats are nocturnal which mean they are awake during the night, when we sleep! Bats are important to our wildlife and even help other organisms to survive. However, in recent years, they have been in dramatic decline. So, although we rarely see them, they deserve any help we can give.
There are 18 species of bat found in the UK, though favourite to Strumphaw Fen include the pipistrelle and the Daubenton’s bat. Daubenton's bats are medium-sized bats with a white underside. They often fly low over water and use their big feet to scoop insects from the surface. Pipistrelles are the smallest of the UK bats, weighing the same as only 10 paperclips and measuring no more than 5cm in size. They are a brownish-red colour and feed on insects. Did you know that one single pipistrelle can feed on 3000 gnats in one night?
Duabenton’s bat over water at Strumpshaw Fen
Bat’s don’t just find shelter on reserves like Strumpshaw, they also can be found in our gardens! While we sleep, bats are out whizzing around our gardens unbeknown to us, being very helpful busy creatures. As with last week’s spiders, we often have a mutually beneficial relationship with bats. They use our gardens for shelter, food and water; preying upon insects. So, just like the spiders, bats also act as a form of pest control. Additionally, they are also pollinators for the plants in our gardens.
However, as we continue to push nature out of our lives and out of the places where we live, bats face more and more threats. Bats live in trees, in old buildings and in other urban nooks and crannies. As buildings are pulled down and trees deforested for more urban development, we are essentially destroying the places bats call home. Which is one reason why bats are so often found in our gardens. Like with many other species, our gardens are becoming a much-needed refuge for these beautiful animals. However, our gardens aren’t always a perfect haven. Bats can be in danger of injury from a cat attack and street lighting reduces a bat’s natural ability to function at night.
So, let’s find out how even the smallest of gardens can become a little more homely for bats. This small list suggests just a few ways we can improve our gardens for the better. For more detail on each of the points in the checklist, visit this Bat Conservation Trust page: https://www.bats.org.uk/advice/gardening-for-bats
One of the best ways to help bats, is to put up a bat box. There is a comprehensive set of instructions here, though I understand carpentry isn’t for everyone! Alternatively, sustainably sourced bat boxes can be purchased here.
So, what are you waiting for? Let’s start being a better home for bats today!
Some information for this blog was sourced from www.bats.org.uk. Please use this link for more detail on the points mentioned above.
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