Ten local people took part in a workshop run by Cheryl Mills of the Cornwall Wildlife Trust. Participants of all ages learnt about the 17 native species in addition to some of the 1,100 bat species in the world, only three of which are vampire bats found in Central and South America. Bude valley is fortunate to be home to five species as discovered on the Bat and Glow Worm Walk this past July.
Did you know that bats have better sight than people at night? Their most valuable sense is echolocation which they use to find insects, moths and the pollen they eat. They are also clean animals and are extremely valuable to humans. They help to keep insects down in our gardens and around the world.
These protected creatures also pollinate some of our favourite foods — avocados, peaches and mangos not to mention the vanilla pod which is used in some of our favourite ice creams.
Bats in the UK are now all protected under law. The flying mammals are under threat due to loss of feeding habitats in addition to building and development work affecting their roosts.
The Bude Canal Regeneration Project supported this workshop, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund. Over ten bat boxes were created for the canal and marshes with participants even taking some home to help encourage bats in their gardens.
If you are interested in attracting bats to your garden, why not use plants which encourage insects, create a wet area, make a compost heap or log pile and keep pesticide free. Some plants which you can put in your garden to attract these special creatures include: night scented stock, sweet rocket, evening primrose, honeysuckle, white jasmine, dog rose, ivy, bramble, chives, mint, sage and borage to name a few.
Participants of the workshop commented:
"These events are great because you get families and people working together. Everyway we look at it these events are positive. Something to leave behind and something to take away which is good for the environment."
"Enjoyable event, lovely to see the children enjoying it too. Would be lovely to carry these events on in future."
For more information on bats, visit the Cornwall Bat group on http://www.cornwall-batgroup.co.uk">www.cornwall-batgroup.co.uk, or the Bat Conservation Trust on http://www.bats.org.uk">www.bats.org.uk
Their final event will be on Saturday, December 6 from 2pm to 6pm in the Castle Classroom. They will be working with the Yarner Trust to create holiday decorations for the canal. Places are limited, please book with Andrea Vaillancourt-Alder, Community Programme Manager, Bude Canal Regeneration Project on 01208 262800.