One of the highlights of being outdoors as dusk falls on a long summer’s evening is to see, or sometimes just sense, a bat flying past. These magical creatures can be identified by the way they fly – the common pipistrelle has an erratic flight, the brown long-eared bat has a slow and hovering flight, and Daubenton’s bat usually flies low over water. These types of bat can all been seen on the Isle of Man.

There are lots of bat ‘hot-spots’ around the Island where the odds of spotting them are fairly high as the sun sets during the summer months. These places include Silverdale Glen, Poulsom Park, Port Soderick, Summerhill Glen, the Onchan Wetlands, Laxey Glen Gardens and Mooragh Park.

It is illegal to handle a bat if you do not have a Bat Handling License. If you find an injured or grounded bat, you must call the Manx Bat Group (366177), DEFA (685844) or the ManxSPCA (851672) and we will contact the relevant agencies.

All bat species, their breeding sites and resting places are protected by law, although licenses can be obtained if disturbing bats is unavoidable (e.g. when demolishing a house). The Manx bat population has declined over the past century due to changes in habitat, pesticides and intensive farming practices and so the special protection they enjoy is needed in order to secure their existence.

The bat species found in the Isle of Man eat insects, using echo-location and their amazing flying skills to catch even the smallest of prey, and moths are often high up on the menu! Discarded moths’ wings are usually a sign that bats are roosting above, either in a roof space or a tree.