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E-learning available to purchase - CPD webinar - Bat Surveying Guidelines 4th edition - Exploring the changes with BCT's Head of Biodiversity and Editor of the Guidelines Jan Collins.
£15 per person
Bat Surveys for Professional Ecologists: Good Practice Guidelines (4th edition) are now available!! These guidelines are the essential reference guide for professional ecologists working on bat surveys. The guidelines have been fully updated with new sections on biosecurity, tree surveys, bat sound analysis auto-identification, data science and more! The guidelines are not a prescription for professional bat work. They do not aim to override professional judgement and cannot be used to replace experience. Deviations from the methods described are acceptable providing the ecological rationale is clear and the ecologist is suitably qualified and experienced. It will be necessary to support such decisions with evidence, particularly if they may lead to legal challenge.
BCT has made the full document available to download as a non-printable PDF by clicking here (last updated 10th October 2023). Please note that the security techniques used in this document are only compatible with recent versions of Adobe Reader. This document may not be readable in many non-Adobe PDF readers and in-browser viewers. We suggest you use Adobe Reader DC on PCs or the most recent version available on other platforms. Please only contact us if you have further problems when using these versions of Adobe Reader.
Hard copies are available from NHBS by clicking the button above.
The production and printing of the publication has been supported by our GOLD sponsor Wildlife Acoustics and our SILVER sponsors ASW Ecology, BatAbility, Ecus, I & G Ecological Consulting, O'Donnell Environmental and Titley Scientific.
Bat Surveys with Night Vision Aids Consultation
Following the publication of Bat Surveys for Professional Ecologists Good Practice Guidelines 4th edition in September 2023, BCT are setting up a working group to further develop guidelines for bat surveys with night vision aids, including thermal imaging and infrared cameras. The working group will attend a kick-off meeting in winter 23/24 and develop the guidelines through a series of meetings.
We recently collected information from practitioners on their current practices and desires/expectations from new guidelines on this topic through a public consultation. This closed on 31st October 2023. We will use the results of this consultation to inform the production of guidance.
Professional Training Standards
The exact balance between judgement, guidance and evidence will vary. We carried out some work on our Professional Training Standards as part of a partnership project with CIEEM and Natural England on Earned Recognition for licensing. From that we have published an interim 2nd edition of our Professional Training Standards. These outline in more depth the level of knowledge and skills required for different tasks.
What if I have questions about the guidelines?
In addition to us not having the resources, it is not in BCT’s remit to give advice on how to interpret the guidance, as this should be for the ecologists own professional judgement. However feedback on the guideline’s usability can be made to Jan Colllins: jcollins@bats.org.uk
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