Bath Spa University bats
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The secret life of Bath Spa University bats
Tuesday, 31 October, 2023Bats have long been associated with Halloween but are residents at Bath Spa University all year round. Conjuring up notions of the supernatural, they are often given a bad name. While their nocturnal nature makes them hard to spot and their tendency to nest in caves draws historic links to the underworld, at Bath Spa they’ve become fascinating research studies and an important part of the campus ecosystem.
For students on the University's BSc (Hons) Wildlife Conservation, BSc (Hons) Environmental Science and BSc (Hons) Biology courses, they are a key part of practical research. From using ultrasonic microphones to detect noises, to conducting behavioural studies on their emergence from the University’s Gatehouse, students can conduct real-world research on campus.
While Newton Park hosts a wide variety of species, one of the most commonly sighted is the horseshoe bat. Though a nationally rare species, these bats have chosen to raise their pups at the University - creating a maternity roost in the Gatehouse on the edge of the Italian Garden.
During this year’s Welcome Week, new and returning students from across the University were given the opportunity to go on a Bat Walk. Led by Senior Lecturer in Zoology, Ralph Thompson, the group detected seven different species of bat in the campus gardens and on the lakeside walk.
Legally protected under British and EU law, the bats are kept safe by the University Grounds Team who work hard to look after them. Low level lighting surrounds their feeding corridors and borders have been planted around the Walled Gardens, providing food sources for the insects that bats eat. Nicholas Pearson Associates, Bath Spa’s ecological consultants, have also advised on a strategy to mitigate the impacts of developments on campus and lecturers have even been spotted stepping in to keep our furry friends safe. Ralph Thompson, Senior Lecturer in Zoology at Bath Spa University, said:
“Last autumn there were a few bats found inside buildings where they weren’t expected. In November I had to use a ladder to collect one Brown Long Eared bat that was perched high up in the Commons atrium. It was taken in by Bristol Bat rescue to be cared for over the winter before being released back into the University’s Italian Garden in the spring.”
Bat boxes have also been placed around campus, providing alternative roosting sites, but most of the University’s population have chosen to make their nests in the Gatehouse. Over 100 bats currently reside at Bath Spa, and keen-eyed visitors can spot them emerging from the old portcullis slit just after the sun sets on campus.
The University’s research is rapidly expanding. Following a student research project that incorporated state-of-the-art analysis software, Bath Spa hopes to broaden its research with MiniBat recorders – ultrasonic sound detectors used to record bat vocalisations for an extended period.
Dr Miriam Thavarajah, Lecturer in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at Bath Spa University, said:
“Bats are unique in their behaviour, morphology and physiology, which makes them fascinating to study. We can learn a lot about their movements and behaviour from the sonar calls they make, which are distinctive when bats ‘commute’, socialise and forage for food. We’re studying bats at Newton Park using ultrasonic sound recorders and specialist software, providing the students with unique opportunities to study these fascinating animals and develop transferable software skills at the same time.”
After completing a research project on the Newton Park bats, one student has even taken their research and experience forward into their career, securing a job as an assistant ecologist with a local ecology consultancy conducting bat surveys – they did not ‘hang about’ in finding their dream job!