Bat Survey in Kent: Protected Species Surveys

Bat surveys are often required for development sites to inform planning applications and establish whether bats or potential bat roosts are present within buildings, structures or trees. In Kent, development works ranging from minor home improvements to large-scale construction projects can potentially affect protected bat species and may require appropriate surveys, mitigation and licensing to ensure that no wildlife legislation is breached.

A bat activity survey is designed to establish the presence or likely absence of bats within a particular area, while also assessing the level and type of bat activity recorded on site. The findings can help inform the design and timing of development works and identify any measures needed to allow a project to proceed without causing harm to bats.

Where bats or bat roosts are identified, appropriate mitigation and compensation measures may be required before work can begin. Depending on the circumstances, these measures could include retaining or enhancing existing roosting features, creating alternative roosting opportunities or installing bat boxes.

All bat species in Kent are legally protected. Species recorded in the county typically include the common pipistrelle, soprano pipistrelle, Noctule and greater horseshoe bat. It is an offence to deliberately capture, injure or kill bats, or to damage or destroy their roosts, without the appropriate permissions or licensing where required. Development proposals that could affect bats therefore need to be carefully assessed to ensure compliance with relevant wildlife legislation.

In Kent, bats are generally most active during the warmer summer months. Consequently, surveys to assess bat activity and investigate potential roosts are usually undertaken during the appropriate survey season. In some circumstances, a winter hibernation survey may also be required to establish whether a building, tree or other feature is being used by hibernating bats.

The appropriate bat survey will depend on the findings of an initial assessment and the nature of the proposed works.

Preliminary Roost Assessment (PRA): A PRA is often the first stage of investigating potential bat presence. An ecologist will inspect buildings, trees and other structures for features that could provide suitable roosting opportunities. The findings can help determine whether further surveys are necessary and inform the scope of any subsequent ecological work.

Bat Dusk Emergence and Dawn Re-entry surveys: Where a PRA identifies suitable features or potential signs of bats, bat emergence and re-entry surveys may be required. These surveys are generally undertaken around dusk or dawn using specialist equipment to detect bat calls and determine whether bats are leaving or returning to a potential roost.

Nocturnal bat surveys: Nocturnal bat surveys are carried out after dark to monitor bat activity across a development site and surrounding habitats. They can help identify the species present and provide information about how bats use different parts of the site.

Hibernation surveys: Some buildings, trees and structures can provide suitable conditions for bats to hibernate. Where potential hibernation sites are identified, surveys must be carefully planned and undertaken to avoid disturbing bats during the winter period.

The team at Collington Winter Environmental are experienced ecological consultants with extensive knowledge of protected species surveys, including bat surveys undertaken for a wide range of development projects.

We take a practical approach to ecological assessment, helping developers understand potential protected species considerations at an early stage of the planning process.

If you require a bat survey in Kent, contact Collington Winter at info@collingtonwinter.co.uk.