Managing habitats on your farm for bats and invertebrates
This event, hosted by Berkeley Heath Farm in the Severn Vale, brought farmers together to explore how working with nature can deliver practical, on-farm benefits. Sarah Wells, Senior Adviser at FWAG SouthWest, shared insights through her role facilitating the Severn Vale Guardians Farmer Group, highlighting how soil health, grazing management and livestock systems underpin resilient farming.
Jane Davies, Agriculture Officer at the Bat Conservation Trust, gave a presentation on how bats rely on grasslands managed to support active dung beetle populations, abundant insects, and connected habitats across the farm. A single dung pat can support around 1,000 insects, forming an important food source for bats; while dung beetles deliver wider benefits through faster dung breakdown, improved soil structure, and reduced fly and parasite pressure. It was great to hear all the questions and discussion that the presentation generated; including what can we do about lighting of buildings, creating artificial and natural roosting sites, and how to sensitively manage woodland and trees.
A tractor tour around Berkeley Heath Farm provided an opportunity to look at existing features that already support bats and to discuss practical options for enhancing habitats further, drawing on shared farmer experience and local knowledge.
Useful links from the presentation:
Woodland Wildlife Toolkit - Bats and woodland - Bat Conservation Trust Advice and guidance on managing woodlands for wildlife, in particular rare and declining species that are dependent on woodland habitats
Buildings, planning and development - Our Work - Bat Conservation Trust Buildings, planning and development
https://www.scops.org.uk/internal-parasites/worms/using-worm-egg-counts/ Sustainable control of parasites and using worm egg counts
https://www.cattleparasites.org.uk/ Sustainable control of worms
https://www.dungbeetletrust.co.uk/ More info on dung beetles! Did you know curlews also rely on dung beetles for food? Also see Dung Beetles for Farmers
Key take-home points:
Bats provide ecosystem services and are great indicators of habitat quality and invertebrate abundance. The value of bats to the dairy industry has been estimated as £35million due to their feeding on pests.
Wetlands, unimproved grassland, hedgerows, dung, flower rich margins and woodlands are all important habitats for bats and supporting invertebrates that bats feed on. It differs between bats species as to the habitats they are most reliant on. For example; horseshoe bats rely heavily on dung beetles while Daubenton’s Bats specialise on feeding over watercourses and ponds.
Maintain and enhance hedgerows to improve habitat connectivity across the farm. Hedgerows that are cut on a rotation to allow flowering and berry production, act as key commuting and foraging corridors for bats, helping them move safely between roosts and feeding areas and supporting stronger insect populations along field margins. Tall, wide and uncut hedges provide three times as many invertebrates.
Grasslands that are unimproved or lightly improved (i.e. contains species diversity) with mixed sward heights and grazing animals are most important for bats.
Manage woodlands to retain and protect existing roosts, minimise disturbance and connect with foraging sites. Typically woodlands of 1-2km in size are needed for roosting. Keep large trees and avoid managing potential roost trees in summer and winter.
Manage buildings to protect existing roosts/access points, minimise disturbance and connect up to foraging areas. Keep lighting to a minimum where possible. Boxes for day roosts should be on the outside of buildings, closest to foraging habitat. Maternity roosts are inside buildings for warmth. Hibernation roosts require cool, consistent temperatures with no air disturbance.
Minimalised and targeted anthelmintic application should form the main part of parasite control. Adopt a sustainable worming protocol that includes monitoring faecal egg counts (FEC) to reduce the use of flukicides/wormers. This helps cut unnecessary treatments, lowers costs and reduces the risk of resistance.
Correct storage, accurate calibration of dosing equipment, and effective administration techniques are essential for effective targeted treatment. This limits overuse of endectocides and reduces the risk of anthelmintic resistance.
Avoiding the use of clear wormers (macrocyclic lactones including avermectins) can significantly reduce harm to dung insects. Where alternatives exist, consider using currently available options with lower impacts on non-target species.
Residues decline over time at varying rates, but dung toxicity is highest in the days/weeks after treatment. Housed treatment or the use of a sacrifice field (away from watercourses) for up to four weeks post-treatment can reduce impacts on invertebrates across the wider farm.
Dung beetles are especially important to Serotine Bats in August and September. Try to minimise use of high-impact products during spring/summer when dung fauna activity is highest.
Implement natural control measures through rotational grazing with mixed livestock to reduce pasture load. Alternating cattle, sheep and horses can help dilute parasite levels and disrupt parasite life cycles. Retain naturally diverse pastures and incorporate herbal leys on grazed land. These types of grassland contain plants with anthelmintic properties which help disrupt parasite cycles within the pasture. Swards containing bioactive species (particularly condensed tannins) can support livestock growth and reduce reliance on chemical treatments.