The first bat monitoring session of the year was conducted on the evening of the 6th April.

Using a digital bat monitoring device, I walked along the footpaths of the Rife and the fields to the west.

I was very pleased to record a large amount of bat activity. Different frequencies were monitored as bat species can be heard along a broad range.

There were two identified species during the evening. The first was the Serotine bat at 27kHZ and the other was the Pipistrelle at 55kHZ.

The Pipistrelle was by far the most common heard (and seen against what light was in the night sky). At one point the monitor was giving constant sounds and the bats were very close. The most activity was on the east side of the Rife between the Brook Lane footbridge and the Ferring Country Centre.

More evening monitoring sessions will be conducted soon.