Devon Bat Group

Image:Pipistrellus pipistrellus lateral.jpg

The Devon Bat Group (DBG) was founded in 1984 to help protect bats and their habitats, to look after injured bats and to advise and educate people about bats. {{cite web | url = https://devonbatgroup.org/our-aims/ | title = Our Aims | website= Devon Bat Group| date = 28 February 2014 | accessdate = 5 December 2016}}

History

The Devon Bat Group was formed in the English county of Devon in 1984 by people concerned about the decline of British bats. Devon, in the South West of England, is of special importance as it supports most of the British bat species and DBG members work to maintain this diversity and increase our knowledge about bats.{{cite web | url = https://devonbatgroup.org/ | title = Homepage | website= Devon Bat Group| accessdate = 5 December 2016}} It is one of a network of bat groups in the UK which are members of The Bat Conservation Trust. The Bat Conservation Trust was formed in 1991 as an umbrella organisation for the network of bat groups in the UK.{{cite web| url = http://www.bats.org.uk/pages/local_bat_groups.html | title = Local Bat Groups| website = Bat Conservation Trust | accessdate = 5 December 2016}}

Group members and activities

The Group members range from people who are interested in learning more about bats and those wanting to join in group activities to professional ecologists. Activities include roost visits, organising bat box schemes, with regular box checks, and bat surveys. Educational talks, arranging bat walks and caring for sick and injured bats are also organised by DBG members. Members with bat licences carry out Bat Roost Visitor work for Natural England. General Group meetings are held every three months and the DBG also has local sections in Exeter, Plymouth and North Devon to organise more local activities.

The group works in partnership with many other organisations across Devon. At several reservoirs across Devon, they have worked with the South West Lakes Trust to monitor bat populations at Roadford Lake and other reservoirs.{{cite web|url = http://www.swlakestrust.org.uk/conservation/projects/bats-project | title = bats project | website = South West Lakes Trust | accessdate = 14 December 2016}} They participate in the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project alongside Devon Wildlife Trust, Clinton Devon Estates, Devon County Council and others.{{cite web|url = http://devonbatproject.org/project-partners/ | title = Project Partners | website = Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat project | accessdate = 14 December 2016}} In 2014 and 2015 they helped to run a citizen science project called The Big Exeter Bat Survey to find out about where (and which) bats live in Exeter.{{cite web|url = http://bigexeterbatsurvey.edublogs.org/ | title = The Big Exeter Bat Survey | accessdate = 14 December 2016}} As part of the work to re-open Hemerdon Mine, survey data from the group were used as evidence to draw up a plan to mitigate the impact of mining on the bats.{{cite book | last = SLR global environmental solutions | title = Hemerdon Tungsten Mine Project, Bat Mitigation Plan, Mine Waste Facility, SLR Ref : 412-01939-00004 | year = 2013 | url = http://www.southhams.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=7027&p=0 | accessdate = 14 December 2016 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161221070316/http://www.southhams.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=7027&p=0 | archive-date = 21 December 2016 | url-status = dead }}

Bat species found in Devon

16 out of 18 UK resident species of bat have been found in Devon. The exceptions are Myotis myotis, the Greater Mouse-Eared bat and Myotis alcathoe the Alcathoe bat.{{cite web| url=https://devonbatgroup.org/bats-in-devon/ | title = Bats in Devon | website = Devon Bat Group| date = March 2014 | accessdate = 5 December 2016}}