The second Wheatland Farm bat survey is back. We’re definitely up to 9 species, and possibly more. So keep your eyes peeled. We’re pretty sure bats roost in the roofs of some of the eco lodges (don’t worry, they won’t come in!).
The survey equipment was put out near the big wildlife pond (field below Balebarn Lodge) for 3 days in September 2018. New to the Wheatland Farm list this time: Daubenton’s bat, Long-eared bat and Serotine bat.
Bats recorded in the previous bat survey at Wheatland Farm included Common Pipistrelle, Soprano Pipistrelle, Noctule, Natterer’s, Wiskered / Brandt’s, Barbastelle, Leisler’s / Noctule bats. (The most recent survey found all these except Natterer’s bat.) And the ‘possibly more?’ That’s because some bat calls are very hard to tell apart, and are lumped in a generic group. They may have been from a species already recorded, or they might have been from something else.
Of the bats detected at Wheatland Farm, Noctule, Soprano pipistrelle, Long eared bats and Barbastelle bats are all UK biodiversity priority species.
The full results are in the attached Wheatland Farm Bat Report, 2018. This survey was part of the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project, which is a 5 year partnership project of 18 organisations led by Devon Wildlife Trust and is supported by the National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund, as well as other funders.
Want to know more? The National Bat Monitoring Programme’s most recent publically available report ( 2016) is here.
Time for a bit more bat watching at dusk. It’s not too late even in November, at least on mild evenings.