Jersey residents urged to report signs of bat roosts

People in Jersey are being encouraged to keep an eye out for signs of bats.

The government's Natural Environment team is working alongside the Jersey Biodiversity Centre to monitor numbers in the island.

The new RoostwatchJE scheme is calling on residents to help with research into where bats live and breed in Jersey.

As bats are becoming increasingly at risk from threats such as climate change, decreasing insect numbers and loss of roosting sites, it is hoped the research will help to understand more about them and assess their conservation status.

The scheme follows similar initiatives in the island such as PondwatchJE and ReptilewatchJE. It encourages islanders to take photographs and log any signs of bat roosting sites via the RoostwatchJE website.

The government has suggested five ways to spot signs of bats around homes, gardens and outbuildings:

• Look for gaps which bats might squeeze under (for example spaces under roof tiles and behind cladding).

• Look for holes in trees, for example those made by woodpeckers, or cracks in branches.

• Look for crumbly droppings on the ground, on windowsills and on walls, and look for dark stains just below a gap where bats might be roosting.

• Keep an eye out for piles of crumbly dropping or insect wings on the floor in places like barns or attics.

• Look for bats leaving their roosts to feed for the night in the garden at dusk.

Bats are protected from disturbance by law, so residents are being urged to keep light and noise to a minimum if entering a loft space, and to withdraw if they see any signs of a presence of bats.