Skye & Lochalsh Bats

07/08/2025

Our newest little friend, yet to be named. A rescue from Crossal who survived a cat attack unscathed. Like all animals, this chonky guy has his own unique personality and so much attitude for one so small!! Definitely the most adventurous and bossy we’ve had this season.

As always, thank you to the wonderful couple who rescued him and of course to the vet at Old School Vets in Broadford who gave him a good check up.

Hopefully we can release this one in the next day or two.

19/07/2025

Meet Elizabeth BAThory, our latest little juvenile pipistrelle rescue from Uig.

14/07/2025

🦇 SUCCESSFUL BAT RESCUE 🦇

We received a grounded bat from the wonderful staff at Old School Vets in Broadford on Saturday morning after someone found him wanding across the road in Portree. The poor juvenile bat was suffering from heat stress and dehydration. After spending a few days resting and snacking, and having a practice run in our small flight cage, our little sky puppy is back up to full strength and going to be released back into the wild tonight 🎉🎉🎉

12/07/2025

09/06/2025

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1K4kHyryjG/

Ask your MP to prevent the Planning and Infrastructure Bill from causing irreversible damage The government’s Planning and Infrastructure Bill is moving through Parliament right now. It includes proposals (in Part 3 of the Bill) that sound positive — like a “Nature Restoration Fund” — but ...

02/06/2025

Hello everyone!

It's that time of year again when I start annoying folk about bat surveys! I'd like to try and get a few roost counts done in June if possible. However, the forecast this week looks pretty poor just now, and I'm off to Barra on Thursday for a few days.
We have roosts in Dunvegan, Waternish and Armadale that we'd like to count if possible. I'll keep an eye on the weather and let you know our plans. It would be lovely to have some company if anyone is available. It's always easier with a few pairs of eyes, and it's a good opportunity for you to get some practice with identifying bats.
Let me know if you are interested in joining us for some practical survey sessions this year, and we can add you to our WhatsApp group.
Cheers,
Cathryn

Picture credit - Hugh Clark/www.bats.org.uk

29/05/2025

Throwback to when I had a full bat nursery of orphaned Australian Grey Headed Flying Fox pups: Buffy the Mango Slayer and Count Chocula. In Australia, we wrap the baby bats in a “blanket burrito” and give them a dummy. The burrito style wrapping simulates the way their mums wings would hold them when roosting and the dummy… well, they’re just like human babies; they self soothe by sucking.

Weighing just a single gram, pipistrelle pups can’t be given the blanket burrito as they’re too tiny and delicate, so we use other methods of keeping them warm and snuggly.

A newborn flying fox weighs around 80grams, which is 10 times the weight of an adult pipistrelle, coming in at 8 grams. Adult Australian flying foxes reach up to one kilogram in weight, maybe more after a big night out in the fruit trees.

16/05/2025

🦇 HAVE YOU FOUND A BAT ROOST?🦇

It’s that time again when bats are settling into their chosen spots for the breeding season. Monitoring these maternity roosts provides crucial feedback on the health and wellbeing of our bat populations in Skye and Lochalsh.

How do you know if you’ve found a maternity roost?

🦇 large numbers of bats flying in and out, especially at dusk and dawn;
🦇 sounds of squeaking and chirping;
🦇 bat droppings at entry points (they look a lot like mouse poo!)
🦇 access points like small (very small) gaps/cracks/holes in warm spots like roof spaces, wall cavities, trees etc.

If you know of a location, please get in touch 🦇

15/05/2025

🦇🦇🦇 HAVE YOU FOUND A BAT? 🦇🦇🦇

With this warm weather and breeding season in full swing, our furry little sky puppies will be out and about in force, searching for snacks and water. If you’ve found a bat somewhere they shouldn’t be, here’s some steps you can take:

🦇 Stay Calm: Bats are generally not aggressive and are more scared of you than you are of them.

🦇 Observe: If the bat is resting or roosting, observe it from a distance. Do not try to handle it!

🦇 Carefully Check for Injuries (from a distance): If the bat seems injured or in distress, it may need help. Without touching the bat or getting too close, look for signs of injury, such as difficulty flying or being unable to move.

🦇 Contact Us: Reach out to us on here. One of our trained bat carers will provide you with advice or come and collect the bat.

🦇 Do Not Touch: Let us do the work for you!

Remember: bats are protected in Scotland. Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, all bat species are legally protected. This means that it is illegal to kill, injure, or disturb bats, as well as to damage or destroy their roosting sites.

26/03/2025

Bat survey season is almost upon us! I'll be out and about, all over the island in the coming months, monitoring our bats. Give me a shout if you'd like to join me sometime!
In the meantime, you can learn a little bit about how to support your local bats, by watching this video, from about 11 minutes in...

On this weeks FAS TV we're in Fife visiting Lawrence Martin who is two years into his tenancy at Blairenbathie Farm. Lawrence talks us through his contractin...

20/02/2025

Happening tonight, and still spaces available for anyone who wants to learn more about bats!
See you there😊🦇

Join Bat Conservation Trust and Species on the Edge for a free beginner's workshop all about bats! 20 February 2025, online.

13/02/2025

🦇 Did you know?🦇

Bats have long been misunderstood creatures! Their association with evil was cemented with the discovery of the vampire bat, which sparked fear due to its bloodsucking nature. And, of course, Dracula, the most well known bloodsucker, got around by turning into a bat.

This fear of them reached fever pitch during large fire rituals, where bats were commonly seen flocking to the insects drawn to the flames. They were just there for the snacks!

Let’s change the narrative and appreciate these fascinating animals for the vital role they play in our ecosystem!