2022 was not the best year for surveying our bat box installations. The late summer weather became progressively more wet following the abnormally hot summer and dry days in which to undertake them became fewer and fewer as autumn arrived. This meant the work was protracted and difficult to achieve. The wet weather and windy days were so frequent that it became a case of seizing the first opportunity of a dry interlude, which was usually at very short notice due to the erratic weather patterns.

 

The bat survey this year was difficult due to the bad weather.

 

This obviously made the formation of the teams necessary to undertake each survey a last minute attempt and many surveys had to proceed with less than a desired compliment of team members to make any progress. These outings were obviously harder to complete with less volunteer support and took a great deal longer. Such was the difficulty, that our survey period of approximately a month to visit all our installations became stretched to a period spanning from the first one at the end of August, to the last one at the beginning of November. Some of these opportunities had to be undertaken in very low temperatures and often immediately following gale force winds, so advanced expectations of poor levels of occupancy were often realised.

 

Difficulty was experienced in recruiting sufficient volunteers at short notice when dry weather permitted.

 

Following our hugely successful year last year when we had Bechstein’s bats occupying several locations in addition to an increased number of other species, we feared the weather conditions would make the 2022 results significantly poorer. To a degree this was indeed the case, but we found a reasonably high occupancy including a retained Bechstein’s bat presence despite this.

 

Despite the poor weather we managed to retain a Bechstein’s bat presence again this year.

 

Due to the very high winds experienced, we found many woodlands contained a large number of fallen trees, often blocking the integral avenues utilised by bats for access into them.

 

We found many trees had fallen in the high autumn winds.

 

This meant in some instances we had to unblock some of the avenues as we proceeded to maintain the flight paths and roosting suitability required for a continuing bat presence. This again added to the difficulty.

 

 Access avenues had to be kept clear to maintain woodland flight paths.

 

In one woodland, we found that so much rain had fallen that areas we normally required to erect our ladders in were flooded to a depth of a metre of water. These boxes were obviously inaccessible to us this year.

 

Erection of ladders in flooded areas proved impossible.

 

We have also made an effort to replant removed trees where necessary to maintain the quality of the wood and its ongoing suitability for bats.

 

To restore woodland suitability for bat occupation some replacement trees were planted.

 

The working parties made progress despite reduced numbers of helpers.

 

These difficulties have made a year when we were struggling to catch up with a late start to the year’s commitments due to unavoidable problems, even more awkward to achieve. Again, the end of year wet weather was continuing to be an obstacle to us. We battled on however, hoping that the erratic seasonal weather conditions returned to a degree of normality to help us. This improvement unfortunately, did not materialise. Below we include a pictorial record of some of our survey ventures and some of the 2022 bat population monitoring activities and the results obtained for you to share with us.

 

The physical effort required was unchanged….

 

….to allow boxes to be accessed. 

 

The bad weather just made it harder and more prolonged with the limited number of dry days to select from.

 

We gained access to most boxes….

 

….despite the extremely wet ground as seen here.

 

The hot summer followed by a very wet autumn had encouraged bramble understorey growth to accelerate and make ladder transportation and positioning extremely difficult.

 

Most woodland terrain is also very uneven…. 

 

.…making safe positioning for ladder footings….

 

….extremely important when working at such high levels, especially when the ground is waterlogged.

 

The helpers on the ground below always ensure the ladder footings remain secure for the person operating at these extreme heights.

 

Despite our fears of poor survey results….

 

….our initial findings contradicted this.

 

The majority of bats found this year….

 

.…were Common Pipistrelles….

 

….found at varying stages of growth….

 

….and numbers.

 

Bats found in boxes have to be treated with care.

 

Many remain stationary….

 

….while others can crawl around while they are being recorded.

 

It is therefore necessary to keep track of all occupants….

 

….while identifying all individuals contained.

 

Groups can be particularly awkward….

 

….as an initially tight cluster can explode outwards….

 

When each survey has been completed, the whereabouts of every individual is important to prevent any being trapped in the door when it is closed.

 

We were very pleased to find Bechstein’s bats in our boxes for a second year running.

 

This makes us feel that all the effort expended in making conditions perfect for them, worthwhile.

 

The work is hard and only for the dedicated to undertake with the necessary expertise, but the year-on-year improvements in numbers we are achieving provides us with the encouragement that the effort is making a significant improvement to local populations.