h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

On a dawn chorus walk at a local beauty spot/golf course, we came on a tree with a ring of bat boxes round the trunk. The local wildlife trust representative who was with us said it was no use putting up one box. He said bats like to roost in numbers and need to choose the direction they want etc - I can't remember it all but he was saying you need several boxes together. He was a bird expert but he did sound as if he knew what he was talking about.

Something for me to think of when I finally get some to put up.
I had heard that I should put up a couple facing different directions myself I think, but I'd forgotten until you reminded me!

As bats are a protected species, I was told by the local bat protection society that people are not allowed to put up bat boxes without permission.

Although this is not relevant to wildlife gardening as such, I live in an area where badgers (a 'protected' species) are being culled, in an experiment(!) to see if this helps reduce TB outbreaks in cattle.

Good article, shame it is restricted to mammals and birds.

Hi Epic, as I think I say in the entry, you are allowed to put the boxes up, but if a bat takes roost, then you are no longer allowed to touch the box.

That's dreadful about the badgers.

I'm glad you like the entry, it's part of a project, you can find all the links here - A592391