Completed Bat Survey Significantly Advances Understanding

Organisers have stated that a recently concluded government initiative, aimed at surveying the indigenous bat population, has “revolutionised” the comprehension of these mammals. The States’ Countryside and Land Management Services (ACLMS) initiated the Bailiwick Bat Survey in 2021, with the goal of enhancing knowledge regarding the distribution and activities of local bats. Researchers indicate that the survey verified the existence of a minimum of 13 bat species, five small mammal species, and six species of bush-crickets. Sarah Allez, the project co-ordinator, commented that the findings have “far exceeded” her anticipations concerning the local bat population and their utilization of the islands. This undertaking represented a collaborative effort involving ACLMS, the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), La Société, the Alderney Wildlife Trust, and La Société Sercquaise. The initiative operated as a citizen science endeavor, providing all individuals within the Bailiwick the chance to borrow automated devices for recording bats. According to organisers, hundreds of volunteers participated in the four-year program, establishing it as “the largest environmental citizen science project the Bailiwick has ever achieved”. Participants were instructed to position a static bat detector in characteristic habitats for a duration of four nights, occurring twice annually. The device automatically captured bat calls onto a memory card whenever a bat passed by during the night. Subsequently, recordings uploaded to the survey’s website underwent automated sound analysis to pinpoint particular species. Mrs Allez stated: “The survey has produced a data set which has revolutionised our understanding of the local bat population and how they use the islands.” She continued: “It was designed to connect and engage our community with an aspect of nature that was generally poorly understood, and the outcome was hugely successful.” She further remarked: “Using citizen science in this way, we were able to help to raise awareness of what bats do for us and why it is important to conserve them, as well as providing the public with a sense of stewardship regarding this aspect of nature.” The survey team indicated that the 2024 report is scheduled for release next year, with an additional report slated for 2026. For updates, BBC Guernsey can be followed on X and Facebook. Story ideas may be submitted to channel.islands@bbc.co.uk. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content found on external sites. Details regarding their approach to external linking are available.