Woodchester Mansion Bats

23/07/2026

Be sure to take a look at http://goo.gl/bFqzf to see our four bat videos.
Also see info about our two bat colonies at
https://www.woodchestermansion.org.uk/bats/
We have lots of greater and lesser horseshoe bats and small numbers of other types.

19/07/2026

🦇 Colony Chronicles at Woodchester Mansion🦇

The nursery colony is becoming busier by the week, with more bat pups arriving as the summer progresses! 💛

This week’s count recorded:

🦇 127 Greater Horseshoe bats (plus pups!)
🦇 315 Lesser Horseshoe bats
👶 Around 40 bat pups were visible on the nursery cameras, with many more likely hidden elsewhere in the roost.

The recent hot, still weather has provided excellent conditions for the adults to forage. As more pups are born, warm, humid nights become especially important because they encourage moth activity, giving nursing mums the best chance of finding enough food to stay in good condition and produce milk for their rapidly growing young.

A cooler spell is forecast next week, so we’ll be watching with interest to see how the colony responds. Every weekly count helps us build a picture of another remarkable breeding season here at Woodchester Mansion.

It’s amazing to think that each tiny pup will spend the next few weeks growing stronger before taking its very first flight later this summer. 🦇✨

📸 nyctalus noctula

19/07/2026

📣 Exciting News!! 📣

Our incredibly popular Bat Experience evenings have officially sold out for the year… BUT we’ve managed to squeeze in one extra date! Hooray! 🦇

So grab your bat-loving bestie, your better half, or come along solo and join us on Friday 28th August for an evening you’ll never forget.

Get up close and personal with these fascinating nocturnal creatures during an expert-led evening in the magical surroundings of Woodchester Mansion.

🕰️ 6.20pm start
🎟️ £30 per person
🔗 https://woodchestermansion.digitickets.co.uk/tickets
🦇 Only a handful of spaces remain, so don’t hang about!

19/07/2026

Mansion Colony Chronicles: Catch-Up! 🦇✨

It has been a busy couple of weeks in the roost and everything has really ramped up with the heat. Between the recent heatwave and a big baby boom, the colonies have kept us very busy.

Here is a catch-up from the last two monitoring visits.

📅 June 21st – The first little arrivals
The weather turned hot, dry and still, which is ideal for moths and beetles, so the bats took full advantage.

🦇 Greater horseshoes: 99 adults counted and the first 6 pups of the season spotted
🦇 Lesser horseshoes: 332 adults plus 1 in the hibernaculum and at least 12 babies already present

Roost notes: With temperatures expected to reach around 36°C and local hay and silage cutting reducing insect numbers, we suspected some bats might start moving deeper into the building to stay cooler.

📅 June 28th – The heatwave baby boom
This week was very hot and sticky with daytime temperatures around 37°C and nights still about 22°C. The roost has been extremely active.

🦇 Greater horseshoes: up to 100 adults and now 23 pups confirmed
🦇 Lesser horseshoes: 307 adults plus 2 in the hibernaculum and 1 in the brewery, with around 30 pups seen on camera and likely many more hidden

Roost notes: The mums are doing really well despite the conditions. Warm nights are important for feeding as they rely on moths and beetles to produce milk. The recent cooler spell around 23°C by day and 13°C at night has helped things settle slightly.

The nursery roost is absolutely full of life at the moment and it is a joy to watch. 🦇💛

Have you visited our bat observatory? 🔎

10/06/2026

Reports about our Mansion Bats are now hosted on the main Woodchester Mansion page.

Please take a look over there for the latest.

13/05/2026

Latest on our bats

https://www.facebook.com/share/17giCT1jn4/

🦇 Colony Chronicles at Woodchester Mansion 🦇

The spring transition is officially underway, and our latest count is in!

• 72 Greater Horseshoes
• 189 Lesser Horseshoes

The weather has been cold and dry with a slight breeze lately, which means our winged residents are currently "flitting" back and forth from their winter hibernation sites depending on the nightly temperatures 🌡️

Why the back and forth?

It all comes down to dinner! After a long hibernation, the bats are incredibly hungry, but they need nighttime temperatures to stay above 8°C. That’s the "magic number" required for the insects they prey on to fly. Until it warms up consistently, the colony remains in this restless, transitional phase.

We are keeping a close eye on the thermometer and the rafters!

Have you visited our bat observatory? Drop us a comment below!