An all-Ireland charity that promotes the conservation of bats and their habitats

Bat Conservation Ireland

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  • Our Work
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You are here: Home / What We Do / Monitoring and Distribution Projects / Car-based Bat Monitoring

Car-based Bat Monitoring

 

Photo credit: Niamh Roche

This scheme is funded by the National Parks and Wildlife Service and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency.

28 x 30km squares are surveyed using this survey method in July and August every year. A dedicated network of 70 volunteers carries out the survey work, contributing about 300 hrs of volunteer time per annum. Surveyors are  provided with all the survey equipment and given training on how to use it . Routes for the car surveys were first mapped in 2003-2006 and each year survey teams drive the same route using the same method. The surveyors currently use time expansion detectors that record a broad spectrum of ultrasound and record the sounds onto smart phone memory cards. The smart phones also record GPS co-ordinates.

The volunteers then send the data to us and during the winter months we identify and count the number of bats recorded on each survey route.

Photo credit: Karen Healy

The scheme provides us with trends in three Irish bat species:

  • common pipistrelle
  • soprano pipistrelle and
  • Leisler’s bat.

Results for the first 11 years (2003-2013) indicate that Leisler’s bat increased significantly in that time and the soprano pipistrelle also increased, although not to the same extent. The common pipistrelle also increased, although at a slightly lower rate than the other two species. We also collect records for Nathusius’ pipistrelle, along with occasional Myotis bats (which may include a combination of Daubenton’s bat, whiskered bat and Natterer’s bat) and brown long-eared bats.

The scheme has also provided evidence that Leisler’s bats are attracted to white and yellow street lights, since these lamps produce UV wavelengths and in turn attract insect prey for the bats to feed on.

We are currently working on using data collected from the car-based bat monitoring to make predictions for impacts of climate change on Irish bat populations.

 

  • Monitoring and Distribution Projects
    • All Ireland Daubenton’s Bat Waterways Survey
    • Car-based Bat Monitoring
    • Brown Long-eared Bat Roost Monitoring
    • Lesser Horseshoe Bat Roost Monitoring
    • BATLAS 2020
    • Bat Record Maps
  • Children and Schools
  • Summer Bat Count
  • Research Affiliations and Projects
  • Campaigns
  • Publications

Bat Conservation Ireland,
Carmichael House,
4-7, North Brunswick Street,
Dublin 7
D07 RHA8

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Bat Conservation Ireland is a company limited by guarantee not having a share capital, registered in Dublin, Ireland.
Company registration number 494343. Charity Registration Number 20039417.

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