Bat and Ecological Surveys

Bat Surveys

Bats are a protected species and it is a criminal offence to cause them any kind of harm, including damaging or destroying their roosts. You will need to undertake a bat survey when there is any chance that you may interfere, disturb or disrupt a bat in its natural habitat. As bats return to the same places every year, a bat roost is protected even if no bats are present.

A bat survey can ensure you take all the necessary steps to avoid damaging our bat population, while still seeing your project come to fruition.

Working alongside our trusted partners, and in line with BS 8596:2015 Surveying for Bats in Trees & Woodland TD Trees is able to offer the following bat survey work:

• Phase 1 Ground-based Habitat Surveys
• Phase 2 Climbed Aerial Inspections
• Entry and emergence watches for nearby built structures

A bat survey will be needed to be conducted during bat survey season, and will need to be conducted by a NatureScot licensed bat surveyor. Our extensive arboricultural knowledge of Potential Roosting Features in trees allows us to provide a complete bat surveying, reporting and recommendations service.  Where bats are found we can help with mitigation/compensation strategies, including Species Protection Plans and Licence application to NatureScot.

Homeowners will require a licence to exclude bats that are causing significant problems in a house and to carry out minor home repairs or alterations that might affect bats in a property. A licence can permit planned development works that might affect bats or their roosts to proceed legally.

We are at the forefront of industry best practice, preferring Aerial Close Visual Inspection (Phase 2) Bat Surveys over activity surveys as a more reliable way of identifying bat roosts in trees. Our ecologists use the latest equipment and climbing techniques to access all parts of the tree which may be in an unsound condition, including Mobile Elevated Work Platforms and Drones with Thermal imaging.

Under British and European legislation it is an offence to:

• deliberately or recklessly: capture, injure or kill a bat;
• disturb bats;
• obstruct access to a bat roost;
• damage or destroy a roosting place (even if bats are not occupying the roost at the time); or
• possess or advertise, sell or exchange a live or dead bat or part of a bat.
• Ecological Surveys