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Bats belong to the order Chiroptera, which means 'hand-winged'. (The tiny bones that support the wing membranes are similar in structure to the bones in our own hands.) There are known to be around 900 species of bats in the world; however, only about fifteen of these occur in Britain.
The majority of Britain's bat species are either endangered or actually threatened by extinction. This threat is very real: the Mouse-eared Bat was declared extinct from Britain in 1991. Habitat loss and in some instances persecution born of human ignorance about the true nature of bats are major causes of the bat decline in Britain; farm and garden insecticides are almost certainly another key factor.
In Britain we do not have to contend with vampire bats, and neither are there any giant fruit bats with 1.5 metre wingspan. What we do have are several species of insect-eating bats and they play important roles in the ecology of towns and countryside, not least in terms of pest control. A tiny pipistrelle bat can consume up to 3000 insects per night - and most of these are mosquitoes or tiny midges. In so doing there is no doubt they make the world a more hospitable place for the rest of us!
Most of the bats that occur in Britain belong to the family Vespertilionidae, the 'evening bats'; however, we also have two species from the family Rhinolophidae, the Horseshoe Bats, so-called because of a horsehoe-shaped plate of skin around the nostrils..
Apart from birds, bats are the only vertebrates capable of sustained flight. They are extremely manoeuvrable, even at low speed, which makes them very effective insect predators.
Although they are not blind, as some people may believe, insectivorous bats use echolocation to avoid obstructions when flying in the dark and to find their way to and from their roosts, and to home in on their prey.
The kinds of bats you will find in Britain and Ireland are essentially nocturnal. They become torpid in winter, hibernating in roof spaces, hollow trees and dark caves. Hibernation is a useful characteristic since insect numbers are much reduced during the winter months.
Bats usually have just a single offspring each year, and depending on species they can live for up to 20 and exceptionally 30 years.
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