New research by the Bats in Churches partnership has found that half of all Church of England churches surveyed are home to bats. It is therefore thought that around 8,000 churches nationwide are home to bats.
One such church is St Mary’s in Kidlington and lucky for the bats who roost there, they have a resident expert. Churchwarden Andy Pedley is a trained bat walk host and an enthusiast for the nocturnal creatures.
He said: “I think bats are extraordinary, tiny, tiny creatures, which are important to the environment. Their natural diet is insects and a pipistrelle bat will eat 3,000 gnats in a night, so they are little pest controllers! They are also an indicator species, so if you have bats you have a healthy environment.”
Andy doesn’t know how many bats have made St Mary’s their home, but they do occasionally fly around the church when the heating wakes them. November is usually the time they begin to hibernate so any bat sightings will be rare during the winter months.
The research also found 12 different species of bats making churches their homes with those located in arable areas more popular. The report said: “With natural roost sites lost to development and agricultural change, these ancient buildings have quietly taken on a vital role in the rural ecosystem.”
Andy concluded: “Our churches are very old buildings and they tend to be full of cracks and crevices. At St Mary’s there are holes all over the place, cracks in the masonry, in the roof timbers. They will get through a very small crack to roost and fly out quite regularly.”
The Bat Conservation Trust offer advice to churches as well as a free roost visit service, as bats and their roosts are legally protected. There are also grants available to help with costs linked to the care of buildings which are home to bats.
Find out more about conservation in churches in our diocese.