Batty sightings
Added: 18th November 2011
The barbastelle bat (Barbastella barbastellus) is one of Britain’s rarest bats with only a handful of colonies known. It is a UK Biodiversity Action Plan species. Recently Janice Whittington from Tarka Ecology was given a barbastelle bat which need rehabilitation. The bat, which was found near Woolacombe in north Devon was a male juvenile, very thin and unable to fly for very long. It will take a while for him to regain his strength and he will be looked after throughout the winter. Barbastelles mainly live in ancient woodland and roost in hollow trees behind loose bark or among exposed tree roots. They are a hardy bat and can tolerate very cold temperatures. Life expectancy is 23 years. Mothers give birth to a single youngster in July or early August. They fly many miles to their feeding grounds where they eat small moths, flies and beetles. Please send your bat sightings to
Devon Biodiversity Records Centre .