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Reports from Members on EBG Events

Bat and Moth Evening, joint with Essex Wildlife Trust Friday 22nd July 2011- Phyllis Currie Nature Reserve.

Around 40 people turned up for this event at Great Leighs.
Although the sky looked none to promising we started at 8-30pm prompt. Roger and Sylvia walked us round the reserve noting areas of interest and members of the Wildlife Trust set up "Moth Traps" and quickly began to collect a number of specimens.
We were all given to opportunity to observe a male Pippistrelle sat comfortably in a box attached to one of the many trees on the reserve. Walking on from this spot we saw our first bats which, according to my detector, were Pips.
Sadly these were also to be the last bats we would see this evening as the heavens then opened up and he had to run for cover. We waited a good half an hour for the rain to stop but as it looked to be set in the the night we had no option other than to call the event off and go home.
Keith Rawlings

Bat Walk at Bourne Valley, Colchester August 13th 2011.

40 members of the public joined this bat walk which started in Colchester Cemetery at 8.00 p.m. In good conditions we observed bats emerging from a roost in a disused chapel, and later identified both Common and Soprano Pipistrelle, with single Noctule and Serotine, flying around the park-like grounds. A short walk took us to Bourne Pond, which was once the mill pond for Bourne Mill now owned by the National Trust. Here we had close views of pipistrelles of both species feeding over the water, and these were later joined by Daubenton's bats which were clearly seen skimming the water in their feeding flight. The eerie sight of a large fish (was it a Pike?) swimming in the red glow of our lantern, rounded off an exciting evening.
Robin Cottrill