Tewkesbury Abbey has surveyed bats in the building as part of its ‘Welcoming All’ project.
It was completed on Thursday (7 August) to help the Abbey consolidate past findings, check for signs of current use and estimate numbers.
Previous bat surveys found that bats use the Abbey, particularly in quiet, undisturbed areas like roof spaces.
Brian Hoggard, Fabric Officer at Tewkesbury Abbey, said:
“It was great to welcome ecologist Colin to Tewkesbury Abbey to do a bat survey. They are such beautiful and interesting creatures so it’s really good to know if any of them are using the building as a home.
“As it turns out, they aren’t using the Abbey very much at all at the moment. There were a few bits of evidence of bat poo and urine in the voids above the chapels at the east end of the church but this wasn’t fresh. We know the chapel roofs are a roost but it looks like they are not using the roof spaces much. The other place where several species roost, in the southern lower roof void and above the nave, is still used by bats but again with low levels of use.
“I think this might be because there may be some better places locally and others will be roosting out of sight in the structure of the church.”
Bats are protected by law, so identifying roosting locations and understanding how they use the building is essential before any restoration or maintenance work takes place.
“It’s really important that we are aware of any bat activity in the building as they are rightly a species protected by law and we need to plan around them should we need to do any work in the future. It’s also good for us to know where they are so we can minimise any disturbance to them,” Brian said.
The ‘Welcoming All’ project is funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, which supports Tewkesbury Abbey in understanding and protecting its natural and built heritage.
Find out more about encouraging bats here.
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