GLE Talk, Build a Bat Detector and LOTS of batty events – 4April25

Posted on by somersetbatgroup in Bat News, SBG Events, SBG News, SBG Newsletter

In this Somerset Bat Group Newsletter we have:

BAT GROUP Annual meeting & GLE Talk

We will hold our 2025 annual meeting, in Othery Village Hall, central Somerset. Come along and get involved!

After the meeting, Daniel Hargreaves will be presenting the results of the 2024 grey-long-eared project, and discussing plans for 2025 GLE trapping and radio tracking.

Agenda and pre-meeting notes are on our website here, and linked below:

If there is anything you would like to raise at the meeting, you would like to stand for the committee (we still need a new Secretary!), or you would like to send your apologies, please email us: somersetbatgroup@gmail.com

Build your own Bat Detector Workshops

The Bat Group is offering the chance for everyone to build their own LOW cost, and HIGHLY capable bat detectors. Do you fancy auto tuning Heterodyne AND Time expansion!

We are running Bat Detector building workshops where you can build your own detector from the Pipistrelle family of devices. It is free to come along to a workshop, to learn about the Pipistrelle detectors, and watch them being built.

However if you want to build a detector this will cost between £15 and £26 depending on which model you would like, and in addition there is a small venue hire fee.

The first event is in the north east of the county as below, but if there is more demand we will run more workshops closer to you.
Simply drop us a email to register your interest, and say which model of detector you are interested in building – somersetbatgroup@gmail.com

The first bat detector building workshop is:

Click here for full details of how the workshops work, and what you need to bring.

BatChat podcast from Frome

This recording of BatChat was made at the Frome Big Bat Count in August last year, and released a few days ago as the finale of series 6. Thanks to Jo from Frome Town Council for organising and hosting, and especially to Steve Roe for coming down to Somerset again.

Listen back to our Batty talks!

In case you missed them, recordings of recent talks are now available:

Thu 27 Feb ’25 – Disco Bats and Glittery Poo

James Shipman talked about monitoring the populations of soprano pipistrelles using UV powder, and why Barbie and Ken never met.
And in a invaluable refresher, he also went through his field ID of all <whisper> 21 </whisper> species of resident UK bat, from his newly released book – “Identifying bats of Britain and Ireland“

Thu 23 Jan ’25 – Online Talk – Connecting People and Landscapes – Bechstein’s and Bat Care

In the face of climate change, we need landscape-scale changes and evidence-based research to protect our mammal species. Simeon Johnson and Beth Gillie talked about their work on Bechstein’s Bats and Bat Care Records, and how they can help us understand climate change.

Sorry, the Avon Bat group event on 6th March, “Surveying bats in woodlands in North Devon and South West Australia” was not recorded.

Frome Climate Adaptation Workshop

Our friends at Frome Town Council have sent us this which may be of interest to our members.

“The planet is getting hotter and this is changing our lives in Frome.

Frome Town Council, in partnership with Somerset Wildlife Trust (SWT) is hosting a workshop at the Town Hall for us to collectively make a plan about how best we can adapt to these changes. 

We will hear the current scientific projections for how our weather is likely to change. How much wetter will the winters be and how much hotter the summers? We’ll consider what these changes could mean for our town and discuss practical climate adaptation and nature recovery actions that are right for Frome.

Please join us if you can and please also consider forwarding on this invite to anyone that it might interest. 

The adaptation workshop will happen at Frome Town Hall on – Tue 13 May 2025 – 19.00 – 21.00. Free tickets can be booked here. 

This workshop will be part of Frome Town Council working with key stakeholders, community groups, SWT and any interested residents to co-create an adaptation plan filled with practical actions we can take together to build our resilience as a town to the changing climate. 

If you have already worked on adaptation planning for Frome. Please let us know and please bring any useful reports with you. 

There will be multiple opportunities to feed into this plan following the workshop.  If anyone would like to find out more or chat about climate adaptation or just climate change more generally – please get in touch with Matt mmellen@frometowncouncil.gov.uk  

CAN YOU HELP WITH …?

The bat group receives far more requests for help than the committee can do. Hence please do let us know if you think you could help out with these recent requests:  somersetbatgroup@gmail.com

  • Brymore Academy, a boys boarding school near Cannington, would be interested in having a bat talk during a forest school lesson and advising on where would be best to install a bat box.
  • Axevale Climate Action Group, would welcome the bat group to have a stall at the Axevale Greening Festival on Monday 5th May (bank holiday) at Ad Astra Cider Orchards in Stone Allerton, near Axbridge, from 12 to 4pm

2025 Bat group Events

It’s going to be a busy couple of months in the bat world! The next events coming up are:

  • 12April – SBG annual meeting and talk about our GLE project
  • (new) 2May – Frome Big Bat Count 1
  • 4May – Edford Wood Bat Box Checks
  • (new) 9May – Thurlbear Wood Bat Box Checks
  • 10May – Great Breach and Ham Wall Bat Box Checks
  • 10May – Shepton Beauchamp Big Bat Count
  • 11May – Harridge Wood Bat Box Checks
  • 16May – Highbridge Big Bat Count
  • 17May – East Mendips Bat Box Checks
  • 17May – Bridgwater Big Bat Count
  • 18May – Levels Bat Box Checks
  • (new) 23May – Ruggin Wood Bat Box Checks
  • Late Spring – First GLE Trapping and radio tracking
  • (new)15June – Bat Detector Building workshop

Details of how to get involved for all events are on the website: https://somersetbat.group/events/

Bat Group Bulletin

This month’s BCT Bat Group Bulletin includes the latest on the Planning and Infrastructure Bill:

Back copies of all past Bat Group Bulletins are on the link below:

WELCOME TO OUR NEW LIFETIME MEMBERS

The group would like to warmly welcome the following members who took out lifetime membership in the last month:

  • SBG0039 – Jan
  • SBG0040 – Sophie
  • SBG0041 – Dave

MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL time

The majority of bat group members last paid their membership in the first part of 2024, hence it is now time for most to renew your membership. We will let you know if you need to renew via your bat group newsletter, so please check your inbox (and spam).

It costs just £5 per household to rejoin the bat group (free for students/unwaged), and your renewed membership would then run until our 2026 AGM, on 18th April 2026.

For regular members, you might like to consider taking out lifetime membership, which is just £50 per household.

Please pay your membership subs by BaCs or Paypal. Then:

Full details on our website: https://somersetbat.group/join/