ID GUIDE
Long-eared bats
When surveying for bats, droppings are a key indication of presence. Although there can be subtle differences between species, sometimes DNA analysis is required, which is the case when trying to tell apart brown longeared bat and grey long-eared bat droppings.
Claire Boothby, Bats in Churches Project training and survey officer, says, “The grey long-eared bat is one of the rarest mammals in Britain with a populaton estimated to be as low as 1,000 individuals, so every new roost we find is of importance.”