About Bats and How We Can Help Them, by Guest Writer, Bat Specialist, Malachy Donnelly

We are lucky enough to have 17 species of these amazing creatures living with us here in the UK.

Sadly, in western culture, most people’s perception of bats come from Hollywood movies depicting them as devilish, vampiric or harbingers of doom or on Halloween when bats become a ‘scary’ decorative motif.

More recently, the covid-19 pandemic further damaged their reputation.

In some cultures across the world bats are seen as symbols of good fortune, rebirth and even messengers of God which in my opinion is far more apt. 

Ecosystem Superhero’s 

There are over 1,400 species of bat worldwide, accounting for a mammoth 20% of all mammal species on our tiny blue dot of a planet and a third of all mammal species in Britain.

Bats are a vital part of ecosystems globally, with fruit bats being important pollinators for food crops including species of mango, banana, durian, guava and agave.

They also play a vital role in keeping our tropical rainforests healthy, distributing tree and plant seeds over large areas during flight in their guano (bat poop).

Here in the UK, they provide a valuable insect control service, with an individual bat eating up to 4,500 insects in one night.

They are also a key indicator species, and a healthy bat population can be a good measure of the health of the ecosystem within which they live. 

Great Mothers

Bats are also highly intelligent beings, often living in large and complex social groups.

Female bats often congregate in maternity roosts of up to 200+ during the breeding season and give birth to a single pup (and on a rare occasion twins!). In the early days of the pup’s life, the small baby bat clings to their mother’s fur whilst she flies and forages for insects.

Once the pups grow becomes too heavy to carry, the mother leaves them in a creche of sorts whilst foraging for insects. The caring responsibility is shared amongst the mothers as they take it in turn to stay and look after the babies. 

Long Lives

Incredibly, some bats have been found to live up to 41 years old. Which for their size, means they are one of the longest living mammal species on the planet.

Scientific studies have suggested that this is due to several factors;

The two primary ones being their superior genetic capability for reducing inflammation as they age and their increase in micro-RNA as they age which helps shut down cell division and thus reducing the likelihood of cancer.

Scientists are studying the longevity of bats closely, with the hope that one day in the future humans will be able to benefit from the long lived bat. 

A Threatened Species 

Unfortunately, these incredible creatures face an uncertain future due to a habitat destruction, climate chaos brought on by the burning of fossil fuels and a bacterial infection called white nose syndrome.

Habitat destruction is the leading cause of the decline in bats in the UK.

Forests and meadows are destroyed to make way for transport links and housing and old buildings where bates love to live are demolished to make way for cardboard cutout homes and shiny new towers.

Another major contributing factor is modern intensive farming practices which involves the heavy use of pesticide and planting of monocultures which has led to an apocalyptic reduction in insect populations across the world.

Bat populations have decreased dramatically over the last century which has led to them being a legally protected species under UK law, making it a criminal act to injure, kill or capture a bat, or destroy a bats breeding site or resting place. 

Bats Need You 

Despite the threats, all is not lost and we can all do our bit to help bats thrive in the UK.

I challenge you to consider doing some (or ideally ALL) of the following and encourage friends and loved ones to do the same: 

• Tell friends and family about how amazing these creatures are! 

  
  

• Eat a vegan diet – the most effective way to reduce our carbon emissions on a personal level is to cut meat and dairy out of our diet – climate change is the number one threat to a habitable planet for all species 

  
  

• Turn off all unnecessary outdoor lighting and ask neighbours / the council to do the same as the over-lighting of our streets, parks and homes has a major impact on where bats can forage / sleep (the darker the better)

  
  

• Garden for bats by planting pollen rich and insect friendly plants, plant night flowering plants like night scented stock to attract moths, avoid the use of pesticides at all costs and leave areas of your lawn to meadow

  
  

• Build a pond to encourage a rich ecosystem of insects and plants that’s great for both bats and the planet 

  
  

• Build bug hotels to encourage the insects bats love to eat 

  
  

• Install bat boxes on the exterior of your home or in your garden 

  
  

• Donate or become a member of the Bat Conservation Trust and volunteer 

The Bat Conservation Trust has been the selected charity of the month for our Personal Training Fundraising.