LBG used funds from members’ fees and donations to purchase 18 ibutton dataloggers in January 2024. These dataloggers were placed inside bat boxes at Bedfont lakes (just south of Heathrow), where Patty and Brian Briggs have been monitoring bat boxes for well over a decade, with very good occupancy by Nathusius’ pipistrelles.

Since ringing first started at Bedfont in 2012, Patty and Brian have ringed a total of 154 Nathusius’ pipistrelles (69 males & 85 females). Notably, a female ringed at Bedfont in October 2016 was recovered in Russia in September 2021 – having travelled a record-breaking distance for a UK bat of 2,018km (this made it into national news!). The total Nathusius’ pipistrelles ringed at Stockers is 47; 40 males & 7 females which included a male caught in late August 2017 that had been ringed in Latvia. Springwell Lake is not so productive with only 3 ringed. If all these accolades weren’t enough, this was the first site in the UK to record Nathusius’ pips roosting in boxes.

The dataloggers record the temperature and humidity within the boxes, to determine suitable microclimate conditions for these and other bat species recorded at the site. The dataloggers have just been removed from boxes (September 2025), and data will be analysed. The aim is to publish this information when the project is complete, which will aid land managers, consultants and homeowners with how to best position bat boxes.

For information on other projects funded by LBG, as well as how to get in touch if you have ideas for new projects that the bat group could get involved in, please click here.

Photo credits: E. Little, C. Montauban