The Norfolk Bat Survey was launched by Dr Stuart Newson at the British Trust for Ornithology in April 2013, to improve our understanding of bats and support their conservation. Since this time, the project has analysed over a million bat recordings from across the county.
With the help of volunteers, the project conducts bat surveys across the whole of Norfolk (and in parts of Suffolk), by providing an opportunity for anyone to take advantage of recent advances in technology for automating the capture and analysis of acoustic data for bats.
The sophisticated equipment is placed at three different locations within a 1km square, which is allocated to a volunteer, and it will record any bat calls throughout the consecutive nights.
These recordings are stored on an SD card which then can be accessed through a computer. Then sound analysis software (such as BatScan) can then be used to closely identify individual species.
Scarning Water Meadows
As part of the project, I'm responsible for monitoring bat activity in Scarning Water Meadows.
The diagram below represents the specific areas, within Dereham, where the recordings will be taking place. The red square, to the bottom left of the image, is where the majority of my recordings will be taking place from the beginning of May until the end of September.
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| Areas being monitored as part of the Norfolk Bat Survey are highlighted red. |
The analysis of the recordings detected the following species. The numbers relate to the number of bat passes rather than the number of individual bats.
| Species | Total number of passes (all night) |
| Common Pipistrelle | 490 |
| Leisler's bat | 1 |
| Natterer's bat | 3 |
| Noctule | 32 |
| Serotine | 3 |
| Soprano Pipistrelle | 40 |
Below are details of recordings that could not be assigned with any certainty to a single species.
| Species | Total number of passes (all night) |
| Leisler's bat or Noctule | 14 |
| Myotis species | 4 |
| Pipistrelle species | 7 |
Results from Monday 8th May 2017 at TF 98466 13275
The analysis of the recordings detected the following species. The numbers relate to the number of bat passes rather than the number of individual bats.
| Species | Total number of passes (all night) |
| Barbastelle | 5 |
| Common Pipistrelle | 1 |
| Leisler's bat | 1 |
| Natterer's bat | 1 |
| Noctule | 18 |
| Serotine | 2 |
| Soprano Pipistrelle | 23 |
Below are details of recordings that could not be assigned with any certainty to a single species.
| Species | Total number of passes (all night) |
| Leisler's bat or Noctule | 6 |
| Myotis species | 2 |
| Pipistrelle species | 9 |
Species Information and Distribution across Norfolk
Common Pipistrelle and Soprano Pipistrelle
The two commonest Pipistrelle species found in the UK, the Common and Soprano Pipistrelles, were only identified as separate species in the 1990s. The two species look very similar and often the easiest way to tell them apart is from the frequency of their echolocation calls.
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| Soprano Pipistrelle |
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| Common Pipistrelle |
The map on the left shows distribution and the map on the right (if present) shows patterns of activity. Deeper red indicates higher certainty of occurrence or greater activity. Maps are derived from statistical models using climate and land cover to explain and predict bat data.
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| The distribution of the Soprano Pipistrelle bat species in Norfolk. |
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| The distribution of the Common Pipistrelle bat species in Norfolk. |
Noctule
The Noctule is one of the largest British species and is usually the first bat to appear in the evening, sometimes even before sunset. They fly in the open, often well above tree-top level, with repeated steep dives when chasing insects. This species can fly at 50kph.
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| Noctule |
The map on the left shows distribution and the map on the right (if present) shows patterns of activity. Deeper red indicates higher certainty of occurrence or greater activity. Maps are derived from statistical models using climate and land cover to explain and predict bat data.
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| The distribution of the Noctule bat species in Norfolk |
Natterer’s bats have a slow to medium-paced flight, sometimes over water, but more often amongst trees, where their broad wings and tail membrane give them great manoeuvrability at slow speed. They normally fly at heights of less than 5m, but occasionally may reach 15m in the tree canopy. Much of the prey is taken from foliage and includes many flightless or day-flying insects.
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| Natterer's Bat |
The map on the left shows distribution and the map on the right (if present) shows patterns of activity. Deeper red indicates higher certainty of occurrence or greater activity. Maps are derived from statistical models using climate and land cover to explain and predict bat data.
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| The distribution of the Natterer's bat species in Norfolk |
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