BatFest 2024 events
BatFest Bat Care for Non-Bat Carers workshop
Ideal for ecologists, vets and vet nurses or anyone who might come across a bat unexpectedly. This workshop is free, but you are invited to make an optional donation towards BCT's conservation work if you are able.
You will learn some tips on what to do if you find a grounded or injured bat, how to keep yourself and the bat safe, emergency first aid and how to get expert help.
When: Tuesday 8th October 2024 at 7:00pm (online)
Workshop leader: Maggie Brown of West Yorkshire Bat Hospital.
Cost: FREE but booking required
Wonderful World of Bat Sounds talk
Explore the wonderful world of bat sounds and discover how talented bats are in their use of sound.
When: Wednesday 16th October 2024 at 6:30pm (online)
Speaker: Philip Briggs - Monitoring Manager for the National Bat Monitoring Programme
Cost: FREE but booking required
What bats eat around the world talk
Daniel Hargreaves
We all know bats eat insects and blood, but what else do bats eat? Join us as we explore what bats eat around the world and the special skills and adaptations different species have to help them feed.
When: Monday 21st October 2024 at 7:00pm (online)
Speaker: Matthew Terry, BCT Trustee
Cost: FREE but booking required
Bat Workers Forum
The Bat Workers Forum (BWF) is an annual meeting held online open to anyone interested in bats, regardless of whether the interest is professional or voluntary and regardless of experience.
When: Thursday 24th October 2024 at 7:00pm (online)
Cost: FREE but booking required
In conversation about bats - Nils Bouillard and Shirley Thompson
In 2019, Nils Bouillard undertook the challenge of a Big Bat Year - travelling around the world to see as many bat species as he could (over 400 species across 30 countries!) sharing some of his experiences in his book Big Bat Year - A Conservation Story. Shirley Thompson also has a fund of bat stories gathered over more than 40 years of bat work, both in the UK and on overseas trips. You are invited to join them online on Friday 25th October as they swap tales and share experiences in conversation about bats.
When: Friday 25th October 2024 at 7:00pm (online)
Cost: FREE but booking required.
Bats vs Beetles
A fun, interactive event where both teams share fun facts to try and prove their animal is the best - but ultimately the final vote is by the audience - who will you vote for?
When: Tuesday 29th October 2024 at 6:00pm (online)
Speakers: Joining Team Beetle this year we have Suzanne Burgess and Sally Morris from Buglife as well as author and beetle enthusiast MG Leonard and Ashleigh Whiffin an entomologist curator from Edinburgh National Museums.
And assembling for Team Bat, we have Naomi Webster, Philip Briggs from BCT and Gail Armstrong and her bats from North Lancashire Bat Group.
Cost: FREE but booking required. There is an optional donation which will be split between BCT and Buglife.
Creative writing competition
Want to develop your creativity further? Try your hand at some creative writing inspired by bats and enter the Batty Laureate writing competitions (Adult and 6-12 year olds categories). Deadline November 2024.
Nominate someone to our Hall of Fame
Nominate someone for a unique award as we celebrate a range of people, their skills and the contribution they have made to the world of bats.
We will also be inducting two significant figures to the BCT Hall of Fame in recognition of their contribution to bat conservation.
