Sussex Bat Inventory

We currently hold over 7,000 bat records, which are presented in the Sussex Bat Inventory. This was launched in 2009 after close consultation with the Sussex Bat Group.

There are 18 species of bat in the UK, all of which have been recorded in Sussex (although some more frequently than others and at different times of the year).

Three other bat species have been recorded in Sussex as migrants or vagrants: Savi’s pipistrelle (Hypsugo savii), Kuhl’s pipistrelle (Pipistrellus kuhlii) and parti-coloured bat (Vespertilio murinus).

Five species are included in Annex II of the EU Habitats Directive: Barbastelle, Bechstein’s, greater mouse-eared, greater horsehoe and lesser horseshoe. All 18 species are included in Annex IV.

Seven species are included in the UK Biodiversity Action Plan: Barbastelle, Bechstein’s, brown long-eared, greater horseshoe, lesser horseshoe, noctule and soprano pipistrelle.

Bats and the Law

Bat populations have suffered huge declines in the last century and, as a result, all species and their roosts are protected by UK and European law; under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 (WCA) in the UK (to implement the Berne Convention) and the Habitats Directive in the EU, which is implemented in the UK through The Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010. Bats and their roosts may also be protected by site designations, for example if their roost site or feeding grounds are notified as a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) or a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

You could be committing a criminal offence if you:

  1. Deliberately capture, injure or kill a bat.
  2. Intentionally or recklessly disturb a bat in its roost or deliberately disturb a group of bats.
  3. Damage or destroy a bat roosting place (even if bats are not occupying the roost at the time).
  4. Intentionally or recklessly obstruct access to a bat roost.
  5. Possess or advertise/sell/exchange a bat (dead or alive) or any part of a bat.

Licensing

If you are planning any sort of work that may interfere with bats, advice must be sought first from Natural England. Similarly, if you discover bats after work has begun, you must stop and contact Natural England for their advice before continuing.

Licences to permit illegal activities relating to bats and their roost sites can be issued for specific purposes.

Sussex Bat Inventory explained in detail (PDF)

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