BatChat

S1E6 This is the first of a two-part special recorded at the Natural History Museum, South Kensington, London.In this first half Steve Roe talks with Steph West who is the Biodiversity Training Manager at the Museum based within the Angela Marmont Centre for UK Biodiversity.Steph discusses the need to train the next generation of natural historians using the Museum's scientists to decant their knowledge as well as some of the bat surveys she gets to undertake on the Museum's Estates and why she loves the nocturnal world so much.Becoming interested in bats at the age of 12, Steph has worked in various aspects of ecology before her role at the Museum including work as an ecological consultant.Acutely aware of the shift in conservation science, Steph also touches on how the NHM is changing to keep itself relevant in today's world.You can find out more about the Angela Marmont Centre which is available for use by the public wanting to improve their identification skills here: https://www.nhm.ac.uk/take-part/centre-for-uk-biodiversity.htmlGive them a follow on twitter here: https://twitter.com/NHM_IDFor info on the Wildlife Garden at the Museum, head here: https://www.nhm.ac.uk/visit/galleries-and-museum-map/wildlife-garden.html Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatManCover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/infoSupport the showPlease leave us a review or star rating if your podcast app allows it because it helps us to reach a wider audience so that we can spread the word about how great bats are. How to write a podcast review (and why you should).Got a story to share with us? Please get in touch via comms@bats.org.ukBats are magical but misunderstood. At BCT our vision is a world rich in wildlife where bats and people thrive together. Action to protect & conserve bats is having a positive impact on bat populations in the UK. We would not be able to continue our work to protect bats & their habitats without your contribution so if you can please donate. We need your support now more than ever: www.bats.org.uk/donate Thank you!

S1E5 Episode five was recorded in May at the Wales Bat Worker’s weekend. The weekend brings together bat workers from across Wales and further afield and Steve speaks to four of them in this episode.Naomi Webster the is the Training & Conferences manager at BCT and gives an insight into what happens at a BCT event.Steve Lucas is the Wales Bat Officer and Species Legislation & Policy Specialist. He talks about bat work in Wales and what Brexit might mean for bat conservation.Denise Foster has recently moved to Wales and is now heading up the Wales element of the National Nathusius Pipistrelle Project (see episode 4 for more on that!).Jean Matthews sits on BCT’s Board of Trustees and talks to Steve about her work with bats over the years and what sort of things Gwynedd Bat Group gets up to.To find out more about the Wales Bat Worker’s Weekend, visit https://www.bats.org.uk/our-work/conferences-symposia/welsh-bat-conferencesFor more details about the events that the Bat Conservation Trust is putting on this year, just head to https://www.bats.org.uk/eventsMake sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/ For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/ Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/infoSupport the showPlease leave us a review or star rating if your podcast app allows it because it helps us to reach a wider audience so that we can spread the word about how great bats are. How to write a podcast review (and why you should).Got a story to share with us? Please get in touch via comms@bats.org.ukBats are magical but misunderstood. At BCT our vision is a world rich in wildlife where bats and people thrive together. Action to protect & conserve bats is having a positive impact on bat populations in the UK. We would not be able to continue our work to protect bats & their habitats without your contribution so if you can please donate. We need your support now more than ever: www.bats.org.uk/donate Thank you!

S1E4 In our fourth episode, Steve joins bat legend Daniel Hargreaves on an autumnal evening in Rye Harbour Nature Reserve on the coastal boundary of Sussex and Kent in the search of Nathusius’ pipistrelle. Dan gives us an insight into the ecology of this migratory species and what discoveries the National Nathusius’ pipistrelle project has had to date in its five year history. Dan is also responsible for setting up the successful ‘TriniBats’ project and describes how that project came about.The National Nathusius’ pipistrelle project was launched in 2014 with a grant from the People's Trust for Endangered Species, to improve our understanding of the ecology, current status and conservation threats for Nathusius' pipistrelles in Great Britain.To find out more about the project, including migration maps of individual bats caught discussed in the episode, visit https://www.bats.org.uk/our-work/national-bat-monitoring-programme/surveys/national-nathusius-pipistrelle-survey Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat:Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/ For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/ Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/info Support the showPlease leave us a review or star rating if your podcast app allows it because it helps us to reach a wider audience so that we can spread the word about how great bats are. How to write a podcast review (and why you should).Got a story to share with us? Please get in touch via comms@bats.org.ukBats are magical but misunderstood. At BCT our vision is a world rich in wildlife where bats and people thrive together. Action to protect & conserve bats is having a positive impact on bat populations in the UK. We would not be able to continue our work to protect bats & their habitats without your contribution so if you can please donate. We need your support now more than ever: www.bats.org.uk/donate Thank you!

S1E3 Episode 3 was recorded in the Gloucestershire countryside at Woodchester Mansion. The Grade I listed Victorian mansion near Stroud, which was abandoned during construction in the 1850s, has colonies of rare greater and lesser horseshoe bats, as well as pipistrelles and small numbers of brown long-eared and serotine bats.The colony of greater horseshoe bats at the gothic manor house has been studied by Dr Roger Ransome and is thought to be the longest continuous study of a mammal by a single individual anywhere in the world.Woodchester Mansion also offers sell-out evening bat walks in the summer, when the creatures can be seen flying out of the building at dusk to feed. Visit their website which lets you know the best time to visit the bats and details of any bat walks: https://www.woodchestermansion.org.uk/Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/ For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/ Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/infoSupport the showPlease leave us a review or star rating if your podcast app allows it because it helps us to reach a wider audience so that we can spread the word about how great bats are. How to write a podcast review (and why you should).Got a story to share with us? Please get in touch via comms@bats.org.ukBats are magical but misunderstood. At BCT our vision is a world rich in wildlife where bats and people thrive together. Action to protect & conserve bats is having a positive impact on bat populations in the UK. We would not be able to continue our work to protect bats & their habitats without your contribution so if you can please donate. We need your support now more than ever: www.bats.org.uk/donate Thank you!

S1E2 We have two guests appearing on this episode:Back from the Brink is one of the most ambitious conservation projects ever undertaken. Its aim – to save 20 species from extinction and benefit over 200 more through 19 projects that span England; from the tip of Cornwall to Northumberland.In our second episode, we talk about one of the UK’s rarest bats, the grey long-eared with Craig Dunton – BCT’s project officer for the Back from the Brink project – and how the project has been working to conserve the species and reverse their decline over the last four years. Find out more here: https://naturebftb.co.uk/We also talk to the 22 year old behind The Big Bat Year https://www.bigbatyear.com/ Nils Bouillard spoke to Steve whilst he was visiting the UK earlier in the year about the challenges of travelling the world to see as many bats as possible and how his adventure is helping spread the word about bats.Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/ For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/ Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/infoSupport the showPlease leave us a review or star rating if your podcast app allows it because it helps us to reach a wider audience so that we can spread the word about how great bats are. How to write a podcast review (and why you should).Got a story to share with us? Please get in touch via comms@bats.org.ukBats are magical but misunderstood. At BCT our vision is a world rich in wildlife where bats and people thrive together. Action to protect & conserve bats is having a positive impact on bat populations in the UK. We would not be able to continue our work to protect bats & their habitats without your contribution so if you can please donate. We need your support now more than ever: www.bats.org.uk/donate Thank you!

S1E1 In our first episode, Shirley Thompson MBE describes how bat conservation in the UK started and some of the experiences she’s had along the way such as meeting Julian Clary for a wildlife documentary and catching a bat in Kent which had been rung in Lithuania! Shirley is the person who set up the Young Batworker’s club and has been editing the Young Batworker magazine for over 30 years and she talks about how children’s communication has changed over the years.To find out more about becoming a Young Batworker, visit https://www.bats.org.uk/membership/scheme Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you enjoyed the episode on social media using #BatChat: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/ For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/ Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatMan Cover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/infoSupport the showPlease leave us a review or star rating if your podcast app allows it because it helps us to reach a wider audience so that we can spread the word about how great bats are. How to write a podcast review (and why you should).Got a story to share with us? Please get in touch via comms@bats.org.ukBats are magical but misunderstood. At BCT our vision is a world rich in wildlife where bats and people thrive together. Action to protect & conserve bats is having a positive impact on bat populations in the UK. We would not be able to continue our work to protect bats & their habitats without your contribution so if you can please donate. We need your support now more than ever: www.bats.org.uk/donate Thank you!

BatChat is the Podcast from the Bat Conservation Trust. Designed for its members and the wider bat conservation community, it talks to the experts as well as local heroes to bring you the stories from the bat conservation movement from the UK and further afield. Series One will be arriving in the next few days!Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode and let us know if you're looking forward to the series on social media:Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BatConservationTrust/Twitter: https://twitter.com/_BCT_Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/batconservationtrust/For more bat news, head to our website https://www.bats.org.uk/Producer: Steve Roe @SteveRoeBatManCover Art: Rachel Hudson http://rachelhudsonillustration.com/aboutSupport the showPlease leave us a review or star rating if your podcast app allows it because it helps us to reach a wider audience so that we can spread the word about how great bats are. How to write a podcast review (and why you should).Got a story to share with us? Please get in touch via comms@bats.org.ukBats are magical but misunderstood. At BCT our vision is a world rich in wildlife where bats and people thrive together. Action to protect & conserve bats is having a positive impact on bat populations in the UK. We would not be able to continue our work to protect bats & their habitats without your contribution so if you can please donate. We need your support now more than ever: www.bats.org.uk/donate Thank you!