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Dozens of baby bats which sadly died during Jersey’s heatwaves last summer are being sent to the National Museum of Scotland to enable genetic research.
At the end of last year, the team working on the Grey Long Eared Project - which is focused on researching and conserving the species Jersey’s rarest bat species - discovered 42 dead bats in one of the island’s largest maternity roosts.
33 of those were juveniles, thought to be on the cusp of learning to fly.
Ecologist Piers Sangan of Sangan Island Conservation, who has been leading the research project for around four years, said it highlighted the impact of "our changing climate, development pressures and changing habitats" on wildlife.
Since then, his team have been investigating all other maternity roosts and have discovered 65 dead bats in total, with 55 believed to have died last year.
While the team lamented the tragedy, the grisly discoveries have yielded one positive outcome.
The National Museum of Scotland has expressed interest in the carcasses.
The bats discovered by the team have now been packaged and are being sent to the Museum's National Science Collection - firstly for research and then display.
Warning distressing images.
— Piers Sangan ???????????? (@PRSangan) November 1, 2022
This is unfortunately the impact of a heatwave in summer and not how we want to see an entire years recruitment to our largest Grey long-eared maternity roost. @_BCT_ @Mammal_Society #ecology #bats #Jersey pic.twitter.com/IfTi6jdJ7a
"These samples can be used for future genetic research into the species, including inter-roost relatedness and also any genetical variations between Jersey and other bats of this species from other locations," Dr Amy Louise Hall, the Direct of Research and Training at Sangan Island Conservation, explained.
"Samples can be applied for by researchers and universities, so research possibilities are endless.
"It is likely that some of the specimens will become skeletons, and others will be taxidermies - both for display."
To date, Jersey has up to 18 species of bats recorded on the island. Nine of these species have been confirmed to be breeding in Jersey.
That research being prominently lead by The Jersey Bat Group, who continue to run long-term bat box projects and static recordings, Masters Students from Jersey International Centre of Advanced Studies (JICAS), The Jersey Grey long-eared project, which has provided the most information on the ecology of any of the island bat species to date, and the island's commercial ecologists, who have identified three out of the 18 species of bat on island.
The recent release of the Bailiwick Bat Survey gave a clearer view of the bat situation across the Channel Islands.
It showed that 13 different species of bat have been confirmed across Guernsey, Alderney, Sark and Herm.
The survey was conducted by 150 volunteer researchers, who spent a collective 2,416 nights across 622 locations in 2022, collecting 3.4 million acoustic recordings.
As well as the survey, The Societe Guernesiaise has received a grant to deliver a 'Bat Upskilling course' to increase the number, and skills, of bat workers on the Island to improve monitoring.
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