I mentioned in a recent post that two hedgehogs had been visiting our garden after dark. It turns out that they are not the only animals to wait for the cover of twilight before making an entrance. Many of you who have dipped in and out of this blog over the years will know that we have a Silver Birch in our garden. We also have an Acer Negundo, another large Acer (purple-leaved, this time), a tall white Buddeia and a Hawthorn. These are the species around the edge, creating a sense of enclosure and height. They undoubtedly provide a leafy habitat for some of the small flying insects that are attractive to bats, for each year our vigil has been rewarded with the return of the bats (or with their emergence from the roost) after the long months of winter.
I have been on the look-out since the recent burst of warm weather, but until this evening my vigil had been in vain. I had discounted tonight as a 'bat night' on the grounds that it was cool and blustery. However, on the dot of 9.15 pm I thought I saw a familiar form through the glass. I switched off the light and peered out, and there circling round the middle of the garden were two fairly large bats. They were certainly not Pipistrelles, but that is all I can say: thirteen species of bat have been recorded in Suffolk and I am as yet far from an expert. The creatures did not stay for long, and, in any case, my vision blurred as darkness fell; but I am delighted to be able to say ...
'the bats are back!'
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