Bat Roost Tree Tag Scheme

Woodland owners, managers, and contractors on the ground often have difficulty locating and distinguishing trees that have been identified as a bat roost. Changes of ownership and site managers over the years can lead to information being misplaced and result in the accidental loss and damage of important bat roosts. It is also acknowledged that re-locating the tree in question can be difficult for bat workers, ecologists and others working with trees in woodlands.

The primary purpose of the bat roost tree tag scheme is to ensure trees containing confirmed bat roosts are easily identifiable. The presence of a tag on a tree is well recognised by woodland workers and site managers, so providing a bat roost tree tag will bring clarity to those on the ground about those trees already identified as bat roosts that are difficult to find again, especially as GPS units will have reduced accuracy in a wooded environment. When a woodland operative sees a tag and their actions may impact the tree, they will know they need to seek appropriate advice before proceeding with any work. This will give a significantly increased level of protection for bat roosts in trees.

Additionally, all tree roost and species records collected through the scheme will support current and future work studying bat’s use of different tree species and roosting opportunities. Information collected from tagged confirmed tree roosts will feed into two databases – a BCT Access database managed by BCT and the Bat Tree Habitat Key database if the required additional records are collected.

We would also like to share the records with the NBN Atlas (public access and enhanced access) if permission from the landowner is provided. It is therefore important that the surveyors gain permission from the landowners, (a landowner permission form can be downloaded below), so we can share the data with NBN Atlas, as well as the Bat Tree Habitat Key project. Further information about sharing of data can be found in the briefing note for woodland owners and managers.

This web page and the next two pages will have the following documents and forms:

• Bat Roost Tree Tag Guidance document
• Briefing note for woodland owners and managers
• Landowner permission form
• Bat Roost Tree Tag order form
• Tree roost and species record forms
• Privacy notices (for surveyors and landowners/occupiers)

• Please seek permission from the landowner before commencing with any tagging or surveying. It is important to ask permission from the landowner before tagging any confirmed tree roosts, whether it is on the public forest estate or private land.
• If there is no public access, please seek permission from the landowner to enter the woodland.

BCT would like to build a positive relationship with landowners and site managers. Tagging a tree roost, surveying or entering a private woodland site without permission could generate negative views towards bats, which is not good for bat conservation, so it is important to seek permission beforehand.

Thank you to our funders:

The Ernest Kleinwort Charitable Trust, the Edith Murphy Trust and the Pilkington General Charity