Bats about Durham
We went bat hunting last night! We arrived at the Botanic Gardens Visitor Centre at 8 o'clock and Allan Watson, who is the University's Health and Safety Service Director, gave us a slide show and talk about bats. It was an excellent talk and I learned that I probably do have bats roosting somewhere on my house, although I don't know what species. They do not hang in the lofts as portrayed but like to find little nooks and crannies to hide in. Boxed eaves are excellent and they will all cram in together. Their droppings are like mouse droppings but when you rub them between your fingers they just disintegrate because of their diet of insects. I have found droppings on my bedroom window and windowsill which is what confirms my suspicion that they are roosting somewhere above. The house is also south facing which is what they like so that they can conserve energy by using the warmth from the sun.
Just after 9 o'clock, having had a quick lesson on how to use them, we set off with the bat detectors. We hadn't been out very long when we located at least one maybe two on the corner of a field next to the wood. We then walked down the lane to the Vice-Chancellor's house as he had given permission for us to wait for the bats to leave their roost. It was really bizarre though, twenty people standing staring at his house. We were rewarded for our patience with what we think were long-eared bats leaving their roost (pictured above). Back at the field we were thrilled by quite a few pipistrelles, some getting really close to feed off the bugs hovering above our heads.
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