Time to celebrate local wildlife at Bat Festival with the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project.

This September people from North Devon are being invited to celebrate some very special local wildlife at one of 25 ‘Bat Festival’ events being held across the county.

The Festival, which is now in its fourth year, is organised by the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project, which is led by the charity Devon Wildlife Trust. Two North Devon events are being planned. Both are ‘bat walks’ where people can discover the secret lives of these fascinating mammals. Both take place in Braunton, the first on Thursday 12 September at 7.30pm; the second on Thursday 19 September at 7pm. Both leave on foot from Braunton’s Countryside Centre. They are free to attend.

The Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project, which has been running since 2015, is supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. Working alongside local farmers, the community and other countryside organisations, the project is securing a future for what is one of Devon’s most endangered animals.

Ruth Testa, Project Manager of the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project, said:

“We want to welcome as many local people as possible to our fourth and biggest ever Bat Festival! Devon is an vital refuge for the greater horseshoe bat. About a third of the UK’s population of this special mammal live here, making the county a real stronghold for them. The Bat Festival is a wonderful opportunity for everyone to learn about and celebrate local bats. The help of local communities to protect greater horseshoe bats is more important than it has ever been as the species has declined by more than 90% in the last 100 years.”

North Devon Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) is helping the project run its Bat Festival events. Dave Edgcombe is the AONB’s Project Officer and said:

“We are delighted with the exciting bat events that are being staged across Devon with the project’s partners. The Bat Festival gives everyone an opportunity to find out more about the secret lives of bats. Here in North Devon there are 2 bat detecting walks in Braunton – do join us for some bat spotting!"

Full details about all 25 of the Bat Festival’s events can be found at www.devonbatproject.org/events

Greater Horseshoe Bat - Photo copyright Mike Symes

Festival celebrates North Devon’s bats

Residents in North Devon are being encouraged to celebrate one of the region’s rarest and most fascinating wildlife species: greater horseshoe bats.

Members of the public are invited to celebrate one of Devon’s nocturnal wonders by joining one of more than 20 ‘Bat Festival’ events being staged across the county. The festival is the only one of its kind in the UK and its events have been organised by the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project – a 5 year partnership project made possible by National Lottery players through a £785,500 Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) grant, led by Devon Wildlife Trust. The project is working towards sustaining Devon’s population of these threatened nocturnal animals.

Ruth Testa, Project Manager of the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project, said:

‘We want people to be as excited about bats as we are, and this festival will bring people closer to the secret life of bats – quite literally!  There are events to suit all interests, ranging from a ‘Bats, Moths and Stargazing night’, an exhibition of wonderful illustrations, talks and plenty of bat walks.’

The month-long festival, which begins on 25^th August with a launch event at Bovey Tracey, includes public bat walks organised by the North Devon Coast Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (18^th and 25^th September), and a drop in bat event followed by an evening talk at Braunton Countryside Centre (Weds 12^th September). The Centre also hosts one of the projects ‘Bat Beacons’, allowing visitors to find out more about bats through an interactive touchscreen.

Dave Edgcombe Project Officer at North Devon AONB said:

“The festival is a great way of raising public awareness of these little known creatures. Braunton is a very special place for greater horseshoe bats, as the surrounding countryside provides excellent feeding grounds. So why not come along and join us to find out more?” 

Further details and booking information for all the events can be found on the project’s website www.devonbatproject.org/events.  

Greater horseshoe bats have seen their numbers plummet by over 90% in the last 100 years. Today Devon remains a stronghold of this endangered species with about a third of the UK population found in the county.

The Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project hopes to reverse the species’ decline. Over the coming years it will continue to work with local landowners, farmers and communities across Devon ensuring that Devon remains a place which offers greater horseshoe bats the room to live and flourish.

A Greater Horseshoe Bat – Photo copyright Michael Symes (All Rights Reserved)

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 Tap here for further Bat Festival details and booking information for all the events .

‘Bat cam’ provides unique view of rare animals

Viewers of a very different kind of reality TV will be going batty in the coming weeks. People can visit www.devonbatproject.org to view a live webcam of a greater horseshoe bat roost in Devon to see hundreds of the rare animals appearing on screen at one time.

The bat cam, installed as part of the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project, is beaming live pictures around the world from a greater horseshoe bat roost at a secret location in South Devon. The Project is a 5-year partnership initiative involving 18 organisations led by Devon Wildlife Trust and supported by the National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund, as well as other funders.

Ruth Testa, Project Manager, of the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project said:

‘The hi-tech infrared camera allows everyone to see what goes on inside a bat roost – something that is not normally possible. By logging on to our website (www.devonbatproject.org) and watching the live footage, people can get a unique and intimate view into the lives of these wonderful animals. You can also watch footage of some of our team’s favourite moments from previous years.’

Colin Morris, Nature Reserves Manager for The Vincent Wildlife Trust, the project partner that owns and manages the roost site, said:

‘The bats are very active at the moment - people should keep their eyes peeled as the female greater horseshoe bats are getting ready to give birth. While difficult to see during daytime, the new-born pups are left on their own once the adults go out to hunt at night. The coming weeks should see some drama as a succession of baby bats appear on screen!’

Greater horseshoe bats have seen their numbers plummet by over 90% in the last 100 years. Today Devon remains a stronghold of the endangered species with about a third of the UK population thought to be surviving in the county.

The Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project hopes to reverse the species’ decline. Over the coming years it will continue to work with local landowners, farmers and communities across Devon ensuring that Devon remains a place which offers greater horseshoe bats the room to live and flourish.

Members of the public can help us improve our scientific knowledge of bats by taking part in the Devon Bat Survey. During the summer months, you can borrow a special detector from 20 locations across Devon using an online booking service www.devonbatproject.org/devon-bat-survey.

A Greater Horseshoe Bat – Photo copyright Michael Symes (All Rights Reserved)

Devon residents go batty for science this summer

Hundreds of people in Devon have surveyed their gardens for bats this summer as part of the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project.

The 2017 Devon Bat Survey has been the biggest yet with 600 unique locations surveyed, from Seaton to Plymouth and Salcombe to Combe Martin. Participants in the survey - which this year runs until the end of October - collect their bat detector and ultrasonic microphone from one of 20 monitoring centres across Devon, including shops, garden centres and community hubs.

Each survey takes place over three nights - so there have been a total of 1,800 nights of bat detecting in Devon gardens this summer. So far that has required more than 2,700 hours of volunteer time in collecting and deploying the bat detectors.

And this survey effort has resulted in more than half a million sound files recording the nocturnal noises - including those of echo-locating bats in flight - in Devon gardens since April.

These files are being analysed to produce a report for each garden showing which of Devon's sixteen bat species has been recorded. Bat surveyors from early in the season have already had their reports, which take around a month for project staff and volunteers to complete.

Devon's landscapes supported thriving bat populations for centuries until some species suffered serious declines in the last few decades. Monitoring bat activity is an important tool in bat conservation, but there are still many gaps in our knowledge of what species are present in different parts of Devon.

Ruth Testa, manager of the Devon Wildlife Trust-led Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project said: "The Devon Bat Survey is so important in helping to increase our understanding of how all bats, not just the greater horseshoe, are using our landscape. By doing it in a way that involves members of the general public, it means that more people become aware of bats around them, raising the profile of these fascinating mammals".

Taking part in the Devon Bat Survey has proved a hit with wildlife lovers in Devon. After receiving the report from their garden, one participant at Goodrington, near Paignton, said: "We are most excited to hear that we have so many different bats in the area. We will most definitely be keeping an eye out for them!"

And receiving survey results has even inspired a little friendly competition among the volunteer surveyors, keen to see whether they can match the number of bat species recorded in their neighbours' gardens. Jill Turner, owner of holiday cottages near Bideford, commented on Facebook: "Really easy to set up the equipment, now eagerly awaiting the report from our August survey. Others in Littleham have discovered 10+ species flying by so we are excited to discover more about our bat population."

There are still opportunities to take part in this year's survey by booking a bat detector online at www.devonbatproject.org. The 2017 survey runs until the end of October. The Devon Bat Survey will return next spring and continue as part of the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project for another three years.

A report on the full results from all bat surveys across Devon in 2017 is scheduled to be available online in January.

 Greater Horseshoe Bat in flight - Photo copyright Frank Greenaway (All Rights Reserved)

Collecting Devon Bat Survey materials at Chudleigh Town Hall

Bat detector, microphone and other kit

Devon Bat Survey Opens for Bookings

A Devon-based project dedicated to conserving one of the county's most endangered animals is now appealing for volunteers to help it in its vital work.

Find out about the bats on your doorstep! This spring and summer, people across Devon can take part in a major scientific bat survey run by the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project. The survey allows volunteers to borrow a detector from one of 20 monitoring centres dotted around the county, to place in a selected 1km grid square for 3 nights. All the calls recorded will be used to increase knowledge of how bats are using the Devon landscape, and what can be done to help them. Anyone can get involved in the survey – no experience is needed and full instructions are supplied.

The Devon Bat Survey 2017 will go live for bookings on Tuesday 21st March. To find out more about how you can get involved, and to choose a square, please visit our website www.devonbatproject.org/devon-bat-survey/

The project is especially keen for people to get involved around Combe Martin, Great Torrington, Okehampton, Chulmleigh, Otterton, Tiverton and Dartington, where we have new monitoring centres for 2017.

Ruth Testa, who manages the project, said: ‘Knowledge of how bats are using our landscape is key to protecting them. This survey allows us to gain information across a huge part of the county, and will let you find out what bats are using your local area.’

The Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project is a 5 year partnership project of 18 organisations led by Devon Wildlife Trust and is supported by the National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), as well as other funders. The project aims to secure the future of the greater horseshoe bat in Devon; the northern European stronghold of this highly threatened mammal. To do this the project is working with landowners and communities to raise awareness and to improve habitats, as well as running research programmes like the Devon Bat Survey to increase understanding of bat species.

Greater Horseshoe Bat - Photo copyright Mike Symes (All rights reserved)

 Tap Link to find out more about the Devon Bat Survey 2017

Funds for learning, exploring and celebrating

Eleven different groups and organisations have received a small grant from the North Devon Coast AONB from this year’s Sustainable Development Fund. Some of the projects focussed on young people, such as Seize the Moment’s ‘Heaven and Hell’ which received £3,880 to support young people to explore the social and cultural history of local churches. Combe Martin Museum’s grant of £3,650 was to purchase an easy to use microscope, screen and binoculars for family beach safaris focussed on geology and wildlife.

Getting different communities engaged with the AONB was superbly achieved by North Devon Moving Image with £3,240 grant for their ‘Wild Shorts’ film competition about wildlife and the environment in the AONB, and Hartland Abbey’s grant of £3,500 for new displays about farming and use of the estate for TV and film productions to inform and thrill their visitors. Two grants were for projects linked to one of our rarest species, the Greater Horseshoe Bats in and around Braunton, with £500 for Braunton Parish Council to create a bat viewing platform and £950 for Braunton Countryside Centre to create an ‘audio bat trail’.

Looking after and understanding our local environment was the focus of a £2,000 grant to Tarka Country Trust to help local communities to manage their verges for wildlife and flowers, a grant of £281 to buy beach cleaning equipment for Croyde Community beach clean group and an £890 grant to Coastwise North Devon for a digital camera and microscope to increase understanding and awareness of the micro-life around our coasts.

The grant scheme is open now to applications for projects to start from April 2017 onwards and is available to individuals, groups, organisations or businesses. “Projects should help to look after the North Devon Coast AONB’s special landscape, special features, wild plants or animals,” said SDF Panel chair Caroline Leaver. “This may be through direct activities or through learning, increasing understanding and awareness. A particular focus of the scheme for 2017 is the historic environment of the AONB and projects related to health and wellbeing using the AONB landscape.”

Full guidance and applications forms are available on the AONB website www.northdevon-aonb.org.uk/our-work/grants or contact the scheme administrator Gigha Klinkenborg on 01271 388647 or gigha.klinkenborg@devon.gov.uk

Wild Shorts Film Making Competition,Wild Shorts Secondary School Category Winners, Hartland Abbey Exhibition,Combe Martin Museum Equpment Photos Copyright North Devon AONB (All rights reserved)

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Tap link for North Devon AONB

Contact Scheme administrator Gigha Klinkenborg 

on 01271 388647 or Email: gigha.klinkenborg@devon.gov.uk

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• The Sustainable Development Fund (SDF) supports projects that bring environmental, social and economic benefits to the North Devon Coast Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). The fund aims to support projects which demonstrate new methods of achieving a more sustainable way of life in this area of great beauty and diversity. North Devon Coast AONB receives this money from Defra because the area is designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

• The work of the North Devon Coast AONB staff unit is guided by the AONB Partnership, which includes representatives from: Natural England, Devon County Council, Torridge District Council, North Devon Council, Environment Agency, National Farmers Union, Tarka Country Trust, North Devon Biosphere Foundation, Country Landowners and Business Association, National Trust, Taw Torridge Estuary Forum, Forestry Commission, South West Forest, North Devon+ and North Devon Biosphere Reserve Partnership.

Rare bats win £700k lottery boost

A project which is working to secure a future for one of Europe's most endangered bat species has been awarded £707,000 of National Lottery funding. The Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project, which has received the grant via the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), will now work for the next five years across the county to secure the long term future of one of the rarest animals in Northern Europe. The project is being led by the conservation charity Devon Wildlife Trust in a partnership involving 18 other organisations.

The project's manager is Ed Parr Ferris:
'We're delighted to have gained this generous support from the Heritage Lottery Fund. The greater horseshoe bat is a species that has seen its European population crash in the last 100 years, and has disappeared from more than half its British range. This has left them clinging on in just a few special landscapes. Devon supports the largest stronghold in Northern Europe. Our county still has a third of the 6,500 greater horseshoe bats that remain in the UK with the project focussing on 11 priority areas around key roost sites. It's the job of our project to work with roost owners, safeguard the surrounding countryside that acts as vital feeding grounds for the bats, and make people aware of the plight of this species.'

Greater horseshoes are one of the UK's biggest bats with a wingspan of almost 40cm. They were once common across southern England but changes in land-use such as urban development and a move away from cattle grazed pastures and hay meadows has led to their disappearance from much of the countryside. Now the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project will work with landowners and local communities close to the bat's 11 priority roosts in the Avon Valley, Berry Head, Branscombe, Braunton, Bovey Tracey, Buckfastleigh, Chudleigh, Tamar Valley, Dartmouth, Harbertonford and Southleigh. The project will work alongside farming communities, providing advice and assistance to manage, restore and create the networks of habitats these impressive bats need, through its own grant scheme and government grants. Working with communities and schools, the project will also help put this species back on the map, enabling everyone to play their part in conserving a species Devon can rightly be proud of. The project's ultimate goal is to restore the landscapes that the bats need to travel through and feed in.

Ed Parr Ferris said: 'Cattle-grazed pastures, wildflower-rich meadows, hedges, woodland edges, orchards and streams all play a key part in the bat's complex lives. They use these landscape features to navigate and travel safely and as hunting grounds to find their favourite prey: moths and beetles. The project will work with local farmers and communities to improve and conserve these features. This will be to the benefit not only of greater horseshoe bats but also Devon's wealth of other wildlife and our treasured landscapes.'

Nerys Watts, Head of the Heritage Lottery Fund South West, said: 'Sadly, bats are not known for being cute or cuddly but their importance to our ecosystem cannot be underestimated and their drastic decline in numbers across the UK demonstrates a very urgent need to protect them. Thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, the partnership led by Devon Wildlife Trust can now run this important project in key sites across Devon to conserve and boost bat numbers for the benefit of everyone.'

Rt Hon Ben Bradshaw MP for Exeter said: 'I'm extremely pleased this support has been awarded to this partnership. The Greater Horseshoe bat has suffered a terrible decline in numbers because of changes in farming practices over the last century or so, but Devon remains one of its strongholds. Work to stop and reverse its decline is extremely welcome.'

Ed Parr Ferris highlighted the importance of the local communities that the project hopes to inspire: 'We need the support of Devon's communities to provide a secure future for Devon's greater horseshoe bats. We need the communities that have these rare and wonderful animals in their midst to help us. That's what makes this project so exciting. We are now looking for schools and community groups to come forward and become champions for their local bats - helping to improve bat habitats, taking part in bat detecting surveys, and promoting pride in their local greater horseshoe bats.'

Anyone living close to one of the 11 Devon greater horseshoe bat areas and who wishes to help should contact the project's Community Engagement Officer, Helen Parr on 01392 279244 or by email on hparr@devonwildlifetrust.org and hparr@devonwildlifetrust.org

 Greater Horseshoe Bats in Limestone Cave - Photo copyright Michael Hammett, Natural England (All Rights Reserved)

The Greater Horseshoe Bat Project has its own website www.devonbatproject.org where you can get lots more information including bat facts and video of the bats in their summer roosts. The project still needs to raise further funds to meet its targets for the next five years and welcomes any donations or support.

'Bat cam' provides unique view of rare animals

Viewers of a very different kind of reality TV have been going batty in recent weeks. People tuning into a live webcam of a greater horseshoe bat roost have seen hundreds of the rare animals appearing on screen at one time. The bat cam is beaming live pictures around the world from an undisclosed greater horseshoe bat roost in South Devon. The camera was specially installed last winter as part of the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project - a 5 year Heritage Lottery Funded initiative which is working towards sustaining Devon's population of these threatened nocturnal animals. 

Ed Parr Ferris is manager of the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project and said: 'The bat cam is playing a key role showing as many people as possible what fascinating creatures bats are. By logging on to our website http://www.devonbatproject.org and watching the live footage, people can get a unique and intimate view into the lives of these wonderful animals.' 

Colin Morris, Reserves Manager for The Vincent Wildlife Trust which owns and manages the site and is a partner in the project, said: 'The bats are very active at this time of year - people should keep their eyes peeled as the female greater horseshoes are now giving birth. While difficult to see during daytime, the new-born pups are left on their own once the adults go out to hunt at night time. The coming days should see some drama as a succession of baby bats appear on screen!' 

Greater horseshoe bats have seen their numbers plummet by over 90% in the last 100 years. Today Devon remains a stronghold of the endangered species with about a third of the UK population thought to be surviving in the county. The Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project hopes to reverse the species' decline. Over the coming years it will be working with local landowners, farmers and communities across Devon ensuring that Devon remains a place which offers greater horseshoe bats the room to live and flourish. 

Ed Parr Ferris said: 'Devon still offers an important home to this rare and fascinating bat. We're lucky that we have kept some of the kinds of landscapes they love - especially the patchwork of small cattle-grazed fields, hedgerows and woodlands. It is this type of countryside which still provides flight paths and rich feeding grounds for greater horseshoes. Of course, it is also this kind of landscape which makes Devon such a special place for us to live too.' 

 A Greater Horseshoe Bat - Photo copyright John J Kaczanow (All rights reserved)

About Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project
Devon is the northern European stronghold for greater horseshoe bats whose populations have fallen by over 90% in the last 100 years. The Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project is a partnership project of 15 organisations across Devon hosted and led by Devon Wildlife Trust 

Future of Devon bats to be decided at High Court

The future of a population of one of northern Europe's most threatened wildlife species will be the focus of a High Court action in Bristol on Friday 12 June. The court granted permission for the claim to proceed in April 2014.
The charity Devon Wildlife Trust is bringing the Judicial Review against a planning decision made by Teignbridge District Council to grant permission for up to 230 houses to be built on land which lies just 170 metres from an internationally important site where female greater horseshoe bats congregate to give birth and raise their young. Devon Wildlife Trust has taken this unusual step in the court because the Rocklands development on the edge of Chudleigh, in South Devon, will pose a serious threat to the future of these rare bats. Chudleigh's population of greater horseshoe bats is one of the largest left in the UK but overall the species is in serious decline. The Devon bats use a site close to the Chudleigh town centre as a place to hibernate in winter and as a summer maternity roost in which to raise their young. The caves have protection from disturbance and development, and form part of the South Hams Special Area of Conservation. However, this same protection does not extend to the surrounding green fields and hedgerows which act as vital feeding grounds and flightpaths for the bats. It is the decision of Teignbridge District Council to permit a development of 230 houses in this bat-friendly landscape that Devon Wildlife Trust is taking court action to try to overturn.
Devon Wildlife Trust's Chief Executive Harry Barton said: 'These bats are some of the rarest UK mammals and Devon's rural landscapes offer one of the last places which they have left. The importance of the decision by the High Court on Friday cannot be overstated. We believe that the needs of the species haven't been properly taken into consideration in the decision to give the go ahead for 230 houses to be built so close by.'
'We recognise that there is an acute housing shortage in the country. However, this case is about ensuring we have the right scale of development in the right place. Chudleigh has grown by 67% since 1950 and is scheduled to expand by a further 435 homes. During the same period the extent of hedgerows, which the bats use to navigate to their favourite foraging grounds, have halved. Cramming development into the remaining green fields around the town threatens the future of this special landscape and the bats and other wildlife which it supports.'
Harry Barton added: 'Farmers in Chudleigh have been working hard to reverse the decline in greater horseshoe populations by maintaining wildflower rich, cattle grazed pastures. It is ironic that this hard work could be undone forever by poor planning decisions.'
Greater horseshoe bats have suffered a catastrophic decline in the past 100 years. This large bat, with a wingspan of almost 40cm, was once common across southern England, but changes in land-use such as urban development and a move away from cattle grazed pastures and hay meadows has seen its numbers tumble by more than 90% since the early 1900s. This has left greater horseshoe bats clinging on in just a few areas. Devon remains one place where the bats can still be seen and supports the largest population in the whole of northern Europe. With just 6,500 greater horseshoe bats left in the UK, a third of these survive in the county.
Devon's greater horseshoe bats are now restricted to just 11 key roosts. But now with the Chudleigh roost threatened by a housing development, Devon Wildlife Trust is concerned that the endangered species will be dealt a devastating blow. Harry Barton, Chief Executive of Devon Wildlife Trust said: 'We have opposed this housing development from its beginnings in 2013; we opposed it at its initial application stage and at a public hearing, all without success. We are very concerned that this may be the last chance we have to make a difference to the greater horseshoe bats of Chudleigh and this is why we had no option but to take Teignbridge District Council to the High Court.'
'We are also holding authorities to account which have to adhere to the most important wildlife legislation in the Country, the European Habitat Regulations. This critical legislation is there to support our most endangered habitats and species populations and is currently under threat by moves to reduce its powers. We hope that our case will set a clear precedent that will help give endangered species populations across Europe a brighter future.'
The Judicial Review is being heard on Friday 12 June at the High Court in Bristol. The solicitors acting for Devon Wildlife Trust are Richard Buxton Environmental & Public Law and the barrister is Jenny Wigley, No 5 chambers
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