Bats in the Belfry

[Andrew Mawson]

Did anyone read the article in todays Telegraph about the couple with a bat nightmare? They've got planning permission to convert half their loft into a home office, conciously leaving the other half for the bats they knew were there. In a fit of honesty they told English Nature what they intended to do, and they've come down on them like a ton of bricks saying 'oh no you don't ' English Natures 'solution' to the problem was for them to build an exact replica of the entire roof upstream of the bat run which they say that they'd have to heat ! Personally I'm very happy to help preserve bats, but just occassionally these things go too far. Anyone out there with direct experience of this sort of thing?

AWEM

[clot]

Yup, it did seem rather OTT. Not had a personal experience re bats but have had professional issues regarding Great Crested Newts! Any whiff of them being present on proposed construction sites and can set you back by up to a year whilst the site is being surveyed for them. The are relatively common in the UK but not mainland Europe. A Directive requires us to do these checks!

[The Medway Handyman]

Customer of mine has a missing roof slate near one corner of the roof. RSPCA have become involved and told him he can't replace it until the chicks have flown the nest - never mind the rain that might get in & damage his property.

The moral of the story is not to tell the tree huggers or ask their advice - it will simply backfire & cause you agro.

See also ROYAL Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals founded 1824 v National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children founded 1884.

I often wonder exactly who is the dominant species on this planet.

[Mogga]

What evidence do they require of them being there in the first place? I know we have normal newts about the place - is one sighting enough or is photographic evidence needed?

[clot]

Try this:

[The Natural Philosopher]

Ditto if excavating for your footings and you turn up any archaeology.

On no account tell anyone or you can kiss your site goodbye for a year or so while loads of bearded beer swilling archaeologists descend on it and wreck it completely. If you are really unlucky you will have to put up with Tony Robinson as well.

[Peter Ashby]

Not my experience. Had a problem earlier in the year with a male oystercatcher deciding the gravel on our extension's flat roof was an ideal place to build a nest. His calling to attract a mate sounded from inside the house like someone knocking wood together, at early hours too. I emailed Scottish Nature and they emailed back promptly expressing sympathy with links to companies selling plastic replicas of predators.

I managed this year to scare him off by going into the loft and opening our roof window and peering out of it at him. Seems the idea of having predatory me above him has caused the desired move, to the flat roof of the extension on the house two doors down. Must pop up and see how the chicks are doing...

Peter

[mogga]

[clot]

Agreed! I refrained from adding that aspect. Once upon a time I worked for a utility that had to undertake maintenance and development of its systems. One particular County Archivist was a stickler for wanting to know where we would be working and became a pain in the .... Right!! We'd advise him of any minor hole in the road - positively inundated him with helpful paperwork! That fixed him!