Oxfordshire Bat Group

Had an amazing time with the Wytham Bat Project during a day of box checks led by Dani Linton. All the volunteers learned so much, and after a summer of surveys it was incredible to finally see Natterer’s, Brown Long-Eared, and Daubenton’s bats up close!

What can be more curious than that the hand of a man, formed for grasping, that of a mole for digging, the leg of the horse, the paddle of the porpoise, and the wing of the bat, should all be constructed on the same pattern, and should include the same bones, in the same relative positions? - Darwin

🦇 If you are new to bats you may find our e-learning resources a great way to get started! Some highlights:
- Intro to bats
- Bat care for non-bat carers
- Bat resources for teachers and youth workers
- Bat talks from conferences

More here: learn.bats.org.uk/collections/...

Having a little weep.
Had to euthanise beautiful juv pip w/compound break to shoulder. Whacked by a cat while still learning to fly.
"You've been to us before" said the lady
"Have you considered keeping your cat in at night?" said I
Not an option apparently
#lovebats #batcare #keepyourcatinatnight

🦇 Discover the magic of summer nights in your garden, where bats take to the sky at dusk. Our gardens are vital for providing food and shelter to these fascinating creatures as their habitats dwindle: www.bats.org.uk/advice/garde...

Insects are dying: here are 25 easy and effective ways you can help protect them From turning out the lights to letting leaves rot, these small steps can create big changes at home or in the wild

A great article, that vitally includes the protection of bats! www.theguardian.com/environment/...

An evening of busy pipistrelle activity assisting on a survey as a biodiversity volunteer for Oxfordshire County Council. It’s a great way to get involved, and you can help with surveys on badgers, newts, water voles, otters, and reptiles too!

Delighted to have found this Grey long-eared bat (Endangered in UK) at #seatonwetlands #wildeastdevon #devon last night. Its broad wings enable it to fly slowly (and almost hover) as it collect insects off leaves. @naturalengland.bsky.social @batconservation.bsky.social 🦇 #wildlife #nature

Hugely enjoyed James Shipman’s ‘Identifying Bats of Britain and Ireland: A Field Worker’s Guide’. Packed with informative and useful tips gleaned from years of experience - the ideal tool as we enter the busy season!

BCT’s response to the removal of Bat Survey Guidelines from Natural England’s advice - News - Bat Conservation Trust Natural England has removed the Bat Survey Guidelines from their standing advice for protected species and development. Read BCT's response here.

BCT’s response to the removal of Bat Survey Guidelines from Natural England’s advice...

www.bats.org.uk/news/2025/05...

Lovely evening to do a sunset survey for the National Bat Monitoring Programme. Saw common and soprano pipistrelles, as well as my first noctule of the year!

Finally out. New paper Full pelage Ultra-Violet fluorescence occurs in both lesser horseshoe bat, Rhinolophus hipposideros & Blasius's horseshoe bat R. blasii www.italian-journal-of-mammalogy.it/Full-pelage-...
Great to be part of the team @henryschofield.bsky.social @vincentwt.bsky.social

A huge thank you to Daniel Hargreaves for his fun and informative talk after our AGM. Incredible to learn more about lesser horseshoe bats and all the great work that the Vincent Wildlife Trust are doing.

The Government's Housing Bill Branded a 'Licence To Kill' Protected Species for Property Developers Environmental groups and conservationists slam the Government's Planning and Infrastructure Bill

The Government’s Housing Bill Branded a ‘Licence To Kill’ Protected Species for Property Developers.

My latest for @bylinetimes.bsky.social

@batconservation.bsky.social @cieem.bsky.social @dom70.bsky.social

bylinetimes.com/2025/03/26/l...

Better planning needs real solutions, not blame games  - News - Bat Conservation Trust The government’s rhetoric is pushing for deregulation at the expense of nature.

🦇We are deeply concerned by the government’s latest rhetoric, which wrongly blames bats for slowing house building and infrastructure projects.

Better planning needs real solutions, not blame games. BCT's thoughts on this here: www.bats.org.uk/news/2025/03...

#bats #planning

Bats hanging upside down.

Members of the Oxfordshire Bat Group are invited to our AGM on Thurs 3rd April! We'll review last year’s activities, share future plans, & welcome new members eager to get involved. Then the highlight, Daniel Hargreaves (Vincent Wildlife Trust) will present a talk on 'Taking Lessers to the Limits'.

🦇 We're getting closer to spring! It is getting warmer and the days are getting longer.

Bats may begin to emerge and signs of limited activity can be seen. There are small numbers feeding as it gets warmer. In bad weather, they may become torpid.

A single myotid bat in hibernation between rock faces.

A single myotid bat in hibernation hanging from rock, covered in water droplets.

A single brown long eared bat in hibernation in rock faces, with ears tucked in.

A single myotid bat in hibernation on rock faces.

Last weekend we conducted a second NBMP bat hibernation survey at old disused mines in Derbyshire. Plenty of myotids including daubentons, and 2 BLE. Similar numbers to last year, maybe slightly down when added up. It's always a privilege (and a responsibility) to be this close to bats in torpor. 🦇

🦇New #BatChat episode is out now! This week, Steve Roe shines a light on Nightwatch, a groundbreaking community science project launched in 2021!

Listen to the episode to find out more. Available in your usual platform and here: batchat.buzzsprout.com/680561/episo...
#NaturePodcast

A close-up picture of a bat within a cave like habitat.

Clumber Park in Nottinghamshire has made an amazing discovery. During a bat monitoring session, several rare Barbastelle bats were spotted. It’s believed to be the park’s very first record of these elusive creatures!🦇
Image: Wildlife Trust
#bats #wildlife #conservation

Had an enjoyable and informative day checking bat boxes and discussing tree roosts with the Berks & South Bucks Bat Group, led by the hugely knowledgeable James Shipman. The bat we found was craftily hidden behind a spiderweb so unfortunately wasn’t able to take a good photo!

The things you find on bat surveys..
Have been crawling around underground for the past few days, monitoring bats and training new bat peeps. @wiltsbatgroup.bsky.social 🦇

Fort Henry becomes home to rare bat species The National Trust is working with Dorset Bat Group to keep a group of rare bats in Fort Henry safe.

Excellent work from the Dorset Bat Group and the Bat Man from Blandford.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

The government has now set a deadline for responses to England planning reforms proposals - Friday 21 February. You can download our response here: www.bats.org.uk/news/2025/01...

Time for the annual hibernation counts today for @batconservation.bsky.social & the National Bat Monitoring Project! We had 3 species, and although the numbers of Greater horseshoes were down, it was good to see a slight uptick in the number of Lessers and the return of the BLEs! Has been a while!

From the archive.
I always appreciate a decent piece of cave/mine art that someone took a bit of time over, and above it, a greater horseshoe (undisturbed) who hadn't read any of the books about how it should hang up

🦇 Start thinking about how you can turn your garden into a bat haven, so it's ready for bats when they start waking up in spring! After months of hibernation they will need all the food they can get.
Find out more here: https://buff.ly/2HkKSuq

Hi!

Bat brick for new build home, with bat logo

We think these bat bricks for new builds are a great example of how innovation and creativity can help wildlife!