North West Ecology
The North West region of England contains five counties, and within each county is an extensive selection of notable towns and cities. Cheshire has a wide variety of towns including Alderley Edge, Chester, Crewe and Warrington, and Cumbria boasts of stunning landscapes, particularly in the Lake District. In terms of cities, Greater Manchester and Merseyside account for the cities of Manchester and Liverpool respectively, as well as a vast number of popular urban towns. Likewise, Lancashire has many towns, such as Blackburn, Blackpool, Burnley and Preston.
With so many rural areas in the North West of England, various bat species are given a full range of opportunities to roost in barns, bridges, churches, garages, houses, sheds and any other buildings that they can infiltrate to create a suitable habitat, as well as trees, hedges and other natural features that would work as feasible bat roosts.
Bat Species in the North West of England
Multiple species of bat have been spotted in various towns and cities across Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside, indicating that they are roosting and reproducing in the North West of England.
Below, we have highlighted the bat species identified in each county:
Cheshire
- Brandt’s bat
- Brown long-eared bat
- Daubenton’s bat
- Leisler’s bat
- Natterer’s bat
- Noctule bat
- Pipistrelle bat
- Serotine bat
- Whiskered bat
Cumbria
- Brandt’s bat
- Brown long-eared bat
- Daubenton’s bat
- Natterer’s bat
- Noctule bat
- Pipistrelle bat
- Whiskered bat
Greater Manchester
- Brandt’s bat
- Daubenton’s bat
- Noctule bat
- Pipistrelle bat
- Whiskered bat
Lancashire
- Brandt’s bat
- Brown long-eared bat
- Daubenton’s bat
- Pipistrelle bat
- Natterer’s bat
- Noctule bat
- Whiskered bat
Merseyside
- Brandt’s bat
- Daubenton’s bat
- Noctule bat
- Pipistrelle bat
- Whiskered bat
Bats are protected under UK and European legislation, making it a legal offence to disturb or harm them. As a result, if you are planning a development project that could impact inhabiting bats, you should seek expert guidance on suitable next steps by arranging a bat survey with a qualified ecologist or run the risk of harming your efforts to secure planning permission.
PEA, PRA and BERS Assessments
During a Preliminary Ecological Appraisal (PEA), an ecologist will analyse the site for evidence of the likely absence or presence of protected species and plants as the first stage in the process. If the findings indicate that bats are present on the site, further surveys will be needed, leading to a Preliminary Roost Assessment (PRA) to determine the specific locations and species of bats on the development site. Likewise, if the PEA identified a great crested newt, for instance, other corresponding protected species surveys would be the next step.
Also known as a scoping survey, a PRA will also involve the ecological surveyor speaking to the developer to understand what the development project will entail before using this information to work out if it will disturb the bats. Evidence of bats could include droppings or the remains of prey, as well as any signs that the property could house bats now or in the future.
If the ecologist believes that bats on the site could be impacted by the development, they will conduct a Bat Emergence and Re-Entry Survey (BERS), otherwise known as a dawn and dusk emergence survey, bat activity surveys, or simply as a bat emergence survey. Due to the hibernation habits of bats, BERS are carried out by several ecological consultants at certain times in the year between May and September, and the process of the assessment involves monitoring bats entering and leaving the area at dusk or dawn over multiple visits to the site.
By conducting the survey more than once, the ecologist can acquire more information and identify if multiple species are present. A report will then be created based on the results of the survey, allowing the ecologist to inform the developer of their findings alongside recommendations for progressing the development despite the presence of bats.
Our Bat Surveyors
For anyone developing a building or land in the North West, it would be strongly advisable to book a bat survey if bats are present or simply if you want to check as a precaution. Not only will it give you peace of mind during any development projects, but it will also prevent problems further down the line and avoid any potential issues with harming roosting bats or breaching UK legislation.
Our ecological consultants are qualified to degree level and situated across the country, including in every county of the North West. We offer a high standard of environmental management and ecological services, and we can support mitigation class licence applications to Natural England if one is needed to relocate bats on the site. Additionally, if any other assessments are vital to planning applications, we can point you in the direction of other experts for protected species surveys if great crested newts, for example, are identified, and tree surveys that involve aerial inspections and tree climbing if trees are in questionable condition.
If you need any bat surveys or would like to enquire about the survey work we offer, speak to one of our team of experts over the phone using the number at the top of this page or receive a free quote by filling out the form above. One of our ecological consultants can then visit the site of your planned development projects to undertake a preliminary roost assessment and a small number of bat activity surveys as required, and if anything else stands in the way of you and a successful planning application, we can advise on further surveys.