BatChat
Trustee and ecologist Steve Roe talks to the experts as well as local heroes to bring you the stories from the bat conservation movement. Designed for both Bat Conservation Trust members and the wider bat conservation community, Series 2 had episodes released every second Wednesday from autumn 2020 all the way through to the spring of 2021. Series 3 is coming later in the year. Bats are magical but misunderstood mammals. At the Bat Conservation Trust we have a vision of a world rich in wildlife where bats and people thrive together.
For the final episode of Series 2 we join Nottinghamshire Bat Group member Barry Collins at a Leicestershire Church where he talks to Steve about the works that were undertaken on the church to restore it whilst retaining the Natterer's bat colony living in the fabric of the building. Barry also discusses the importance of churches in the local community as well as how they're adapting to the 21st century and how he, along with dozens of other bat workers, are working with church communities up and down the country to find a solution to retain bat roosts whilst allowing these buildings at the heart of villages to be regularly used.
- Become a bat explorer in your local church with the Bats in Churches Project
- Find out more about Barry's work
- Follow the Leicestershire and Rutland Bat Group on twitter
- Follow Nottinghamshire Bat Group on twitter
- Follow Essex Bat Group on twitter
Remember we're on the lookout for stories and projects to include in the next series of BatChat so if you have a great story to tell, email comms@bats.org.uk
Join the conversation on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
The 2020 Woodland Symposium was hosted by BCT, six years after the inaugural symposium. It bought together landowners, ecologists, bat workers and professionals from the woodland and forestry industry to listen to talks from 15 speakers covering research, knowledge updates and case studies on woodlands and bats. We hear from three of those speakers as well as a couple of the 11 students who had been given a place at the conference by bursaries offered by the Back from the Brink project (check out episode 2 for more on that!).
- George Fisher talks about the Woodland Wildlife Toolkit
- Vikki Bengtsson on Veteranisation of trees and Vikki also discusses this topic on another podcast "Tree Lady Talks"
- Rob Coventry discusses Ash Dieback
Join the conversation on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
Chester Zoo is the most visited zoo in the UK with over 2 million visitors a year. It's also a conservation and education charity committed to preventing extinction. The fruit bat forest in the Twilight Zone exhibition is a fantastic visitor experience; Steve joins Dave White, the manager of the Twilight Zone, who explains how it's also used as an insurance population for the endangered Rodrigues fruit bat Pteropus rodricensis which is only found on the island of Rodrigues. Dr Claire Raisin the field programme coordinator for Madagascar and the Mascarenes explains how island-wide bat surveys which started in the mid-1990s are helping Chester monitor the nine main roost sites in Rodrigues. And finally we meet Helen Bradshaw the Estate Ecologist who amongst her many roles manages the native bat species roosts across the 250 hectare Estate opened in 1931 by George Mottershead.
Find out more about the project at Chester:
- Fruit Bat Forest
- Stories to Save Species in Rodrigues
- Mauritian Wildlife Foundation and their Facebook Page
- Follow Dr Claire Raisin and Helen Bradshaw on twitter
- Find out more about the Nature Reserve at Chester Zoo
Join the conversation on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
Steve joins Helen Ball and other members of Staffordshire Bat Group as they undertake a winter hibernation survey for the National Bat Monitoring Programme (NBMP). Recorded in February 2020 in the Staffordshire Peak District, they undertake the latest survey of disused lead mines searching for bats deep in torpor.
Helen reveals what it's like to undertake the survey (it's a VERY steep hillside!) and what sort of things you're likely to find in old mine adits. Apart from the bats - lots of bats - there's other wildlife down there too and the surveys have revealed just how important the site is for the bats of the Peak District.
Find out more about Staffordshire Bat Group:
The NBMP hibernation surveys: https://www.bats.org.uk/our-work/national-bat-monitoring-programme
The Big Bat Skills Event Online is back this February - Book Now!
https://www.bats.org.uk/events/big-bat-skills-event-online
Join the conversation on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
The Bat Conservation Trust is a small conservation charity but undertakes a vast amount of work in their aim to conserve bats. During the runup to Christmas, Steve spoke with their Chief Executive Officer, Kit Stoner, to find out what it's like to run a small but busy charity, the current challenges and whether she manages to get out and do bat work in her spare time after work!
- Follow Kit on twitter
- Find out more about the upcoming British Bat Survey
- Discover the work we do
Join the podcast conversation on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
In November 2019 before the word Coronavirus had become all-too familiar, the Scottish Bat Conference was taking place in Perth. In this episode Steve speaks to Liz Ferrell BCT's Scottish bat officer, Sue Swift who published the authoritative work on long-eared bats and Tracey Jolliffe who has an interest in zoonotic diseases and discusses bats and rabies.
- Book your place at the 2021 Scottish Bat Conference here
- Find your local Scottish bat group here
- Follow Liz Ferrell on twitter
- Follow Tracey Jolliffe on twitter
- Browse second-hand copies of Sue's monograph on long-eared bats here
Tell us what your favourite encounter with long-eared bats has been online by using #BatChat
Join the podcast conversation on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
The weather has certainly got chilly in the last few days, but back in late October, it was still mild and Steve visited a bat colony which was still in residence in its summer roost. He meets up with Helen Parr, community engagement officer for the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project. They discuss how the project has been received by the community over the last five years and what achievements its had whilst wandering around the countryside of the south-west, visiting the habitats that the largest Greater Horseshoe bat colony in western Europe relies on to thrive.
So tune in and discover how this National Lottery Heritage Fund project has been giving a helping, er...wing, to the Greater Horseshoes of Devon.
- Loads of info about the project, including live cameras, here: http://devonbatproject.org/
- Their twitter, Facebook and YouTube channels
- Devon Bat Group
- Vincent Wildlife Trust
Join the podcast conversation on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
Winifred is the Chief Scientist at Bat Conservation International as well as an associate research professor in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
In this episode, Steve finds out about the discovery Winifred made about the ecology of Pallid bats whilst undertaking her PhD out in the deserts and chats to her about her work as a key scientist in the efforts to research the effects of White-Nose Syndrome, informing long-term management actions.
The two WNS websites Winifred mentions:
- https://www.batcon.org/our-work/research-and-scalable-solutions/white-nose-syndrome/
- https://www.whitenosesyndrome.org/
Follow Dr Frick on twitter: @FrickWinifred
Join the conversation on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
Remember seeing bats over your garden years ago and suddenly realised that they've vanished over time? Wildlife garden landscaper Joel Ashton reveals how you can help attract bats to your greenspace by greening up a fence and planting certain species to increase insect diversity which in turn will provide your local bats with a buffet! At the Bat Conservation Trust we have a vision of a world rich in wildlife where bats and people thrive together and Joel is helping achieve that vision, one garden at a time. So tune in and discover how to get bats reappearing against the evening skies of your home.
Joel's book 'Wild Your Garden': https://www.hazelwoodlandscapes.com/ is available from your local bookseller.
Follow Joel on social media: @_joelashton and @Butterfly_bros
Videos available on his YouTube site
Join the conversation on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
A camping trip in the New Forest was the first sighting of bats that broadcaster, naturalist and writer Chris Packham had. He became the president of the Bat Conservation Trust in 2006 and in this episode recorded during the 2020 lockdown, Steve Roe asks Chris what it was about the Trust that made him want to become President. Chris tells us about the time he had serotine bats flying around his house whilst watching a European cup final and reveals some of the bat encounters he's had during his career as a television presenter.
As Halloween is nearly upon us we’re challenging people to take part in the great British #BatBake: https://www.bats.org.uk/news/2020/10/join-in-this-halloween-with-the-great-british-batbake
To discover more of the bat groups around the UK, head to the bat group pages on the Bat Conservation Trust website: https://www.bats.org.uk/support-bats/bat-groups
Join the conversation on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
In this bonus episode recorded during the UK lockdown, we have two guests on the show. Tom August is a scientist based at the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology and Lisa Worledge is Head of Conservation Services at the Bat Conservation Trust. They talk to Steve about the interest that bats are currently getting in the press around the origins of the current COVID-19 pandemic, what bats can teach us about future pandemics and how some bat species have been practicing social distancing far longer than we have!
Resources mentioned in the episode include:
- FAQs around Bats and Coronaviruses: https://www.bats.org.uk/about-bats/bats-and-disease/covid-19-and-bats
- Good Practice Guidelines for Bat Rehabilitators: https://cdn.bats.org.uk/pdf/Resources/Bat-Groups/COVID-19-GPG-for-Bat-Rehabilitators_01May2020.pdf?mtime=20200501123411&focal=none
- The Sunrise/Sunset Survey: https://www.bats.org.uk/our-work/national-bat-monitoring-programme
- How to build a bat box: https://www.bats.org.uk/our-work/buildings-planning-and-development/bat-boxes
- How to find your local bat group: https://www.bats.org.uk/support-bats/bat-groups
Bats are magical but misunderstood mammals. At the Bat Conservation Trust we have a vision of a world rich in wildlife where bats and people thrive together. We know that conservation action to protect and conserve bats is having a positive impact on bat populations in the UK. We would not be able to continue our work to protect bats and their habitats without your contribution so if you can please donate. We need your support now more than ever. To donate please go to: www.bats.org.uk/donate Thank you!
If you've got a great bat project or story to tell that you think other listeners would love to hear, drop us an email at comms@bats.org.uk
Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
This week we have two guests on the show. Hannah Van Hesteren is one of the Helpline Managers at the Bat Conservation Trust. She talks to Steve about the vital work the Helpline does each summer when it takes hundreds of calls each day from members of the public who have found an injured or grounded bat.
Gail Armstrong was the recipient of the Pete Guest Award in 2019 for her outstanding practical contribution to bat conservation. Over the last 25 years, Gail estimates she's cared for 800 bats to date in North Lancashire. She discusses what it is about bat care that's so important to their conservation.
To support the Helpline, head to their JustGiving page: https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/BatHelplineNeedsYou
Bats are magical but misunderstood mammals. At the Bat Conservation Trust we have a vision of a world rich in wildlife where bats and people thrive together. We know that conservation action to protect and conserve bats is having a positive impact on bat populations in the UK. We would not be able to continue our work to protect bats and their habitats without your contribution so if you can please donate. We need your support now more than ever. To donate please go to: www.bats.org.uk/donate Thank you!
If you've got a great bat project or story to tell that you think other listeners would love to hear, drop us an email at comms@bats.org.uk
Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
Despite a number of our bats using trees as roost sites, we know surprisingly little about how bats use trees. In this episode Steve sits down with veteran tree expert Jim Mullholland from the Arboricultural Association and discusses what we still don't know about the ecology of bats and trees. Jim also touches on a project he's been working on recently using trail cameras as a surveillance technique to help understand this subject.
Jim has a YouTube channel with a number of videos of bats inside tree roosts. You can view that channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcxgmE0Z3NAW3n1yzTPohpA
To discover more of the bat groups around the UK, head to the bat group pages on the Bat Conservation Trust website: https://www.bats.org.uk/support-bats/bat-groups. Their Facebook page is here: https://www.facebook.com/ManxBatGroup/
Join the conversation on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
The British Isles have a large number of islands around its coasts and some of these have bat groups. In this episode Steve discusses the challenges of being an isolated voluntary group with Carol Williams who is the secretary of the Isles of Scilly Bat Group and with Ani Binet who until recently was a resident on Jersey in the Channel Islands and an active member of the Jersey Bat Group.
There is also some news hot off the press from the Isle of Man Bat Group. You can read more about the exciting news at our press release here: https://www.bats.org.uk/news/2020/02/lesser-horseshoe-bat-found-in-the-isle-of-man
To discover more of the bat groups around the UK, head to the bat group pages on the Bat Conservation Trust website: https://www.bats.org.uk/support-bats/bat-groups. Their Facebook page is here: https://www.facebook.com/ManxBatGroup/
Join the conversation on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
Steve heads to the Churnet valley in north Staffordshire to join Staffordshire Bat Group members Helen Ball and David Nixon for the day. Helen explains how a colony of Brandt's bats in one of their bat box schemes (started by the Vincent Wildlife Trust) have become one of the main study subjects in their small Myotis bat project which is taking place across the Churnet valley. In the evening, Dave explains the aims of the advanced bat survey techniques they're using out in the field to help with the study and discusses an interesting finding they've made where there appears to be no overlap between any Brandt's and Natterer's colonies within the valley woodlands.
If you're interested in finding out more about the bat work taking place in the Midlands region, the biennial Midlands Regional Bat Conference is taking place on Saturday 28th March 2020, more info and booking here: https://www.bats.org.uk/our-work/conferences-symposia/english-regional-bat-conferences/midlands-bat-conference
Take a look at the Staffordshire Bat Group website: http://www.staffordshirebats.btck.co.uk/
To find YOUR local bat group: https://www.bats.org.uk/support-bats/bat-groups
Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
James has been involved in bat conservation since 2010 and has been involved in a variety of projects in that time including setting up Gib-Bats (the Gibraltar Bats Project) in 2013. In 2016 he was awarded the Bat Conservation Trust's Pete Guest Award for making an outstanding practical contribution to bat conservation. In this episode Steve joins James at a bat box check event just outside of Greenham Common in Newbury Berkshire before driving over to Bath to undertake some evening bat work!
Take a look at the Gib-Bats website: https://www.gibmuseum.gi/our-work/gib-bats
To find YOUR local bat group: https://www.bats.org.uk/support-bats/bat-groups
Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
This is the second installment of a two-part special recorded at the Natural History Museum, South Kensington, London.
This time Steve Roe talks with Roberto Portela Miguez who is the senior curator in charge of mammals at the Museum.
Roberto tells the tale of how he and colleagues discovered that a bat preserved in a jar of alcohol which had sat on a shelf in the collections for 30 years was actually a new species to science. He also discusses what role the vast Chiroptera collection at the Museum still has for conservation in today's world.
You can read the original Natural History Museum article here: https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2015/october/new-bat-species-found-in-museum-collection.html
Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
This is the first of a two-part special recorded at the Natural History Museum, South Kensington, London.
In this first half Steve Roe talks with Steph West who is the Biodiversity Training Manager at the Museum based within the Angela Marmont Centre for UK Biodiversity.
Steph discusses the need to train the next generation of natural historians using the Museum's scientists to decant their knowledge as well as some of the bat surveys she gets to undertake on the Museum's Estates and why she loves the nocturnal world so much.
Becoming interested in bats at the age of 12, Steph has worked in various aspects of ecology before her role at the Museum including work as an ecological consultant.
Acutely aware of the shift in conservation science, Steph also touches on how the NHM is changing to keep itself relevant in today's world.
You can find out more about the Angela Marmont Centre which is available for use by the public wanting to improve their identification skills here: https://www.nhm.ac.uk/take-part/centre-for-uk-biodiversity.html
Give them a follow on twitter here: https://twitter.com/NHM_ID
For info on the Wildlife Garden at the Museum, head here: https://www.nhm.ac.uk/visit/galleries-and-museum-map/wildlife-garden.html
Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
Episode five was recorded in May at the Wales Bat Worker’s weekend. The weekend brings together bat workers from across Wales and further afield and Steve speaks to four of them in this episode.
Naomi Webster the is the Training & Conferences manager at BCT and gives an insight into what happens at a BCT event.
Steve Lucas is the Wales Bat Officer and Species Legislation & Policy Specialist. He talks about bat work in Wales and what Brexit might mean for bat conservation.
Denise Foster has recently moved to Wales and is now heading up the Wales element of the National Nathusius Pipistrelle Project (see episode 4 for more on that!).
Jean Matthews sits on BCT’s Board of Trustees and talks to Steve about her work with bats over the years and what sort of things Gwynedd Bat Group gets up to.
To find out more about the Wales Bat Worker’s Weekend, visit https://www.bats.org.uk/our-work/conferences-symposia/welsh-bat-conferences/wales-bat-workers-weekend
For more details about the events that the Bat Conservation Trust is putting on this year, just head to https://www.bats.org.uk/events
Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
In our fourth episode, Steve joins bat legend Daniel Hargreaves on an autumnal evening in Rye Harbour Nature Reserve on the coastal boundary of Sussex and Kent in the search of Nathusius’ pipistrelle. Dan gives us an insight into the ecology of this migratory species and what discoveries the National Nathusius’ pipistrelle project has had to date in its five year history. Dan is also responsible for setting up the successful ‘TriniBats’ project and describes how that project came about.
The National Nathusius’ pipistrelle project was launched in 2014 with a grant from the People's Trust for Endangered Species, to improve our understanding of the ecology, current status and conservation threats for Nathusius' pipistrelles in Great Britain.
To find out more about the project, including migration maps of individual bats caught discussed in the episode, visit https://www.bats.org.uk/our-work/national-bat-monitoring-programme/surveys/national-nathusius-pipistrelle-survey
Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
Episode 3 was recorded in the Gloucestershire countryside at Woodchester Mansion.
The Grade I listed Victorian mansion near Stroud, which was abandoned during construction in the 1850s, has colonies of rare greater and lesser horseshoe bats, as well as pipistrelles and small numbers of brown long-eared and serotine bats.
The colony of greater horseshoe bats at the gothic manor house has been studied by Dr Roger Ransome and is thought to be the longest continuous study of a mammal by a single individual anywhere in the world.
Woodchester Mansion also offers sell-out evening bat walks in the summer, when the creatures can be seen flying out of the building at dusk to feed. Visit their website which lets you know the best time to visit the bats and details of any bat walks: https://www.woodchestermansion.org.uk/
Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
We have two guests appearing on this episode:
Back from the Brink is one of the most ambitious conservation projects ever undertaken. Its aim – to save 20 species from extinction and benefit over 200 more through 19 projects that span England; from the tip of Cornwall to Northumberland.
In our second episode, we talk about one of the UK’s rarest bats, the grey long-eared with Craig Dunton – BCT’s project officer for the Back from the Brink project – and how the project has been working to conserve the species and reverse their decline over the last four years. Find out more here: https://naturebftb.co.uk/
We also talk to the 22 year old behind The Big Bat Year https://www.bigbatyear.com/ Nils Bouillard spoke to Steve whilst he was visiting the UK earlier in the year about the challenges of travelling the world to see as many bats as possible and how his adventure is helping spread the word about bats.
Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
In our first episode, Shirley Thompson MBE describes how bat conservation in the UK started and some of the experiences she’s had along the way such as meeting Julian Clary for a wildlife documentary and catching a bat in Kent which had been rung in Lithuania! Shirley is the person who set up the Young Batworker’s club and has been editing the Young Batworker magazine for over 30 years and she talks about how children’s communication has changed over the years.
To find out more about becoming a Young Batworker, visit https://www.bats.org.uk/membership/scheme
Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
BatChat is the Podcast from the Bat Conservation Trust. Designed for its members and the wider bat conservation community, it talks to the experts as well as local heroes to bring you the stories from the bat conservation movement from the UK and further afield. Series One will be arriving in the next few days!
Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you're looking forward to the series on social media:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/
For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/
Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan
Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/about
Support the show (https://www.bats.org.uk/donate)
