Encouraging Bats
Many people enjoy spending long summer evenings sitting in their gardens, watching as daylight turns to dusk and bats begin to fill the night sky.
These small and fascinating creatures often live in close proximity to us, using our gardens as an important source of food, water and shelter. As their natural habitats become more scarce, our gardens are playing a more important role in securing a future for bats.
Did you know? Bats are a sign of a green and healthy environment, so creating a garden that's good for bats will also be good for people.
By following a few simple steps, you can turn your garden into a bat haven...
The following material offers a range of ideas on attracting bats - and other wildlife - to your garden, such as planting night-scented flowers, building a pond, letting your garden go a little wild or putting up a bat box.
Encouraging Bats - A comprehensive guide on creating a bat-friendly garden, along with some helpful tips on how to identify your nocturnal visitors.
How to Make a Bat Box
Bat Box Design, by Kent Bat Group
Bat boxes are also available from the Bat Bazaar shop. BCT receives a donation from each sale.
What next?
Once you have successfully attracted bats to your garden, there are many ways you can enjoy your new visitors and get more involved.
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Find out about different types of bat detectors,which can help you identify the species you have attracted to your garden.
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You may wish to count bats for BCT as part of our National Bat Monitoring Programme, which keeps track of UK bat populations and helps to inform our conservation work.
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Why not join the Bat Conservation Trust and become part of a national community of bat enthusiasts?
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You could also get involved with you local bat group - there are more than 100 local groups across the UK that are made up of volunteers who are passionate about bats.
Related downloads
Make your garden safe for bats