Bats can play havoc with construction schedules if found on site. 叠耻颈濒诲颈苍驳鈥檚 blogger spent a balmy evening in Regent鈥檚 Park to find out more

A bat walk for the press and DEFRA in Regent鈥檚 Park brought out the wag in everyone on Monday. 鈥淚 heard about this, and thought I鈥檇 give it a flutter,鈥� said a DEFRA official who specialises in Scottish farming and being droll. 鈥淚鈥檒l be bat,鈥� said another, who was nipping into a local pub鈥檚 toilet.

We were there after The Telegraph diarist Same Leith declared in a column 鈥淪hoot a bat for Britain, I say鈥�. The Bat Conservation Trust was not impressed, so set up this trip for the press.

When we got there Katie Parsons, BCT's Head of Biodiversity, handed out bat detectors (amazingly, such things really do exist, although I was disappointed that there was no clingy superhero outfit in the 鈥榖at packs鈥� the BCT handed out). These allowed allowed us to hear the bat鈥檚 sonar and the raspberry sounds they make when gobbling insects. After an hour of listening to the engaging chirps of Daubenton, Noctule and Pipistrelle bats Leith鈥檚 mood mellowed a little. 鈥淚鈥檓 actually quite a softy at heart,鈥� he told me.

But some construction firms will feel that his original point was valid: if for some reason the bats decide to nest in a construction site this summer, you鈥檒l have to wait until September when they start hibernating to be able to move them. Otherwise you鈥檒l be breaking conservation laws.

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