Forest chiefs to erect more bat boxes in Notts wood

MORE bat boxes will be placed in a wood near Retford to allow for research into their habitat preferences.

The Forestry Commission has revealed plans to install a further 30 bat boxes in Elkesley Wood, which is a hotspot for at least four different species including the increasingly rare Leisler’s Bat – the second largest in the UK.

Adrienne Bennett, ecologist with the Forestry Commission, said: “We’ll erect the new boxes in broadleaf trees along the River Poulter which runs through the wood.”

“For some years we have had a similar number of boxes on conifer trees nearby, so this project will give us chance to research the habitat preferences of the bats.”

“There is still a lot we don’t know about bats and especially the way they cope with changes in their environment so work like this is really valuable.”

All the UK’s 17 bat species has been placed on the European Protected Species list.

Last spring experts found 39 bats during checks in Elkesley.

Boxes not only provide bats with ready-made places to roost in spring and summer, making up for the lack of nooks and crannies in trees, but they also allow conservationists to monitor populations.

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