# Pipistrelle bats -Pipistrellus pipistrellus



## Spikebrit (Oct 23, 2006)

Hey guys, 

Just been sat at my desk turned round and looked out the window and saw a two Pipistrelle bats _Pipistrellus pipistrellus, _flying past my window. It was great for about 5- 10 mins they flew in circles past my window passing within about 6 inches at one point. it was great. They then flew over the roaf's of some near by houses and then back to flying in circles outside my window. 

I have never seen wild Pipistrelle bats that close before, it was ace, you could hear them calling and everything.

Would have loved to have got a pic

Jay


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## laurencea (Aug 28, 2009)

how do you know they were pips?

if you could hear them they might been have been one of the larger bats (and you must be young!).

good spot though - you lucky thing.


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## Spikebrit (Oct 23, 2006)

laurencea said:


> how do you know they were pips?
> 
> if you could hear them they might been have been one of the larger bats (and you must be young!).
> 
> good spot though - you lucky thing.


I am 99% sure they were pips, we got quite a good look at them, and having seen a few pips very close up in captivity, I think they are. However, I may be wrong I am by no means an expert on bats. 

I like to think i'm young, but i'm not lol. Though I am unsure as to what that has to do with the pips exactly, unless you mean they could be a young species of another bat? 

We moved into this house about a years ago and with it being in a city I never expected to see bats, but we seem to see quite a bit of wildlife here which is surprising. 

Jay


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## Woodsman (Aug 12, 2008)

Spikebrit said:


> I am 99% sure they were pips, we got quite a good look at them, and having seen a few pips very close up in captivity, I think they are. However, I may be wrong I am by no means an expert on bats.
> 
> I like to think i'm young, but i'm not lol. Though I am unsure as to what that has to do with the pips exactly, unless you mean they could be a young species of another bat?
> 
> ...


Apparently,children and young people are the only groups to be able to hear bat sounds in general.


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## laurencea (Aug 28, 2009)

Spikebrit said:


> I am 99% sure they were pips, we got quite a good look at them, and having seen a few pips very close up in captivity, I think they are. However, I may be wrong I am by no means an expert on bats.
> 
> I like to think i'm young, but i'm not lol. Though I am unsure as to what that has to do with the pips exactly, unless you mean they could be a young species of another bat?
> 
> ...


younger people can (sometimes) hear bats. you lose the top end of your hearing as you get older. i've heard bats' social calls (not as high pitched as echolocation), but that was a few years back. also, pips call at high frequencies, some of the larger bats call at lower (between 20 and 30khz). pips call at 45 to 55khz, depending on the type of pip.

never know, you might have bats in your house!


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## jamesthornton (Nov 24, 2008)

Yes I was wondering how you heard them. I recently went out and used a tracker. I'm 18 and heard nothing without it..


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## Testudo Man (Aug 3, 2005)

I have bats that fly around my back garden nearly every night...i even shot a pic of one recently, I was extremely lucky to get the pic too...

I have no idea what type of bat they are?...but Im sure ive heard them too?...And yes, Im an old geezer:whistling2:...But i can hear the high pitch sounds that a lot of cat alarms make :bash: when other people can be standing right next to me, and they dont hear a thing.


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## vawn (Jul 1, 2008)

there are 3 kinds of bat the frequent my garden, their wings when they fly past you make a flappy noise when they all come out together it is more like a rakett lol


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## Testudo Man (Aug 3, 2005)

I had at least 2 bats reapeatedly swooping really close to me one night...The only thing i can think of is, that at the time, i was using a windup torch...I think the noise that this windup torch was making, must have been attracting them to me???


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## Spikebrit (Oct 23, 2006)

laurencea said:


> younger people can (sometimes) hear bats. you lose the top end of your hearing as you get older. i've heard bats' social calls (not as high pitched as echolocation), but that was a few years back. also, pips call at high frequencies, some of the larger bats call at lower (between 20 and 30khz). pips call at 45 to 55khz, depending on the type of pip.
> 
> never know, you might have bats in your house!


Im 24, nearly 25, so by no means am young. I only heard one squeek so to speak, i couldn't hear all the calls. Maybe this was the social call you talk of since there was two of them playing. 

I've just been chatting with a friend of mine and apparently stoke has one of the highest number of pips in the UK, so I am pritty sure it was a pip. 

I would love to have bats in the house, might have to have an explore of the attic and watch them closer to see where they are going. 

cheers
Jay


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## Spikebrit (Oct 23, 2006)

jamesthornton said:


> Yes I was wondering how you heard them. I recently went out and used a tracker. I'm 18 and heard nothing without it..


I only heard one sqeek, my partner who was watching them with me didn't hear it. 

Could it be the socal call somone mentioned earlier since the two were playing?


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## Natrix (Dec 9, 2006)

Spikebrit said:


> I only heard one sqeek, my partner who was watching them with me didn't hear it.
> 
> Could it be the socal call somone mentioned earlier since the two were playing?


I think you may of seen a mother and baby. I have pips and long eareds in my roof. About this time of year I often see pips flying together like you describe and I was told by our local bat warden that it's a baby learning to hunt by following it's mother. And yes, some times the babies can be heard to squeek. I think they are still getting the hang of the high pitched stuff. 

Natrix


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## Spikebrit (Oct 23, 2006)

Natrix said:


> I think you may of seen a mother and baby. I have pips and long eareds in my roof. About this time of year I often see pips flying together like you describe and I was told by our local bat warden that it's a baby learning to hunt by following it's mother. And yes, some times the babies can be heard to squeek. I think they are still getting the hang of the high pitched stuff.
> 
> Natrix


aww that makes it even sweeter

Jay


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## wildlifewarrior (Jun 26, 2008)

just to add if anyone is from stoke and wants to see more bats....then we do have bat walks around staffordshire with a couple of expert wardens ....: victory:


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## Spikebrit (Oct 23, 2006)

wildlifewarrior said:


> just to add if anyone is from stoke and wants to see more bats....then we do have bat walks around staffordshire with a couple of expert wardens ....: victory:


now who would these expert wardens be?? Might be nice to do a proper bat walk. 

Jay


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## Amalthea (Oct 2, 2007)

I hear the bats around my house all the time.... But, I can also hear those horrible high pitched whistles.


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## wildlifewarrior (Jun 26, 2008)

Spikebrit said:


> now who would these expert wardens be?? Might be nice to do a proper bat walk.
> 
> Jay


Bruce wayne is one of them.....


I'll get you the names of the others later when am at the wildlife garden


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## laurencea (Aug 28, 2009)

if they weren't feeding then it could well have been social calls, which are at a much lower frequency. i could hear them when i was in my 30's.

if anyone is in London and wants to see bats, then the London Wrtland Centre does bat walks on a thursday (3 more left this year) and Lee Valley bat group do walks too.

the Bat Conservation Trust has a great site with lots of advice and info and has a run-down on the type of detectors you can get.

as Natrix said, now is the time the youngsters are taking to the air. there were heaps of bats at the wetland centre last week, despite heavy drizzle.


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## Natrix (Dec 9, 2006)

laurencea said:


> if they weren't feeding then it could well have been social calls, which are at a much lower frequency. i could hear them when i was in my 30's.
> 
> if anyone is in London and wants to see bats, then the London Wrtland Centre does bat walks on a thursday (3 more left this year) and Lee Valley bat group do walks too.
> 
> ...


I hate to be a show off:gasp: but I had a wonder around the garden tonight and spotted several pairs of pips flying about. Mum in front, baby following behind. I also spotted a long eared bat picking off moths from the buddlia. 
I'll have a look at the front of the house tomorrow and see how many bats are living in my roof at the moment. It varies year to year and also on the time of the year. The best ever count was a few years ago when I watched over sixty bats come out to feed in one night. 

Natrix


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## laurencea (Aug 28, 2009)

Natrix said:


> I hate to be a show off:gasp: but I had a wonder around the garden tonight and spotted several pairs of pips flying about. Mum in front, baby following behind. I also spotted a long eared bat picking off moths from the buddlia.
> I'll have a look at the front of the house tomorrow and see how many bats are living in my roof at the moment. It varies year to year and also on the time of the year. The best ever count was a few years ago when I watched over sixty bats come out to feed in one night.
> 
> Natrix


have you told the BCT? 

can i come round with my bat detector?

can i live in your house?

will you adopt me? :flrt:


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## Woodsman (Aug 12, 2008)

Natrix said:


> I hate to be a show off:gasp: but I had a wonder around the garden tonight and spotted several pairs of pips flying about. Mum in front, baby following behind. I also spotted a long eared bat picking off moths from the buddlia.
> I'll have a look at the front of the house tomorrow and see how many bats are living in my roof at the moment. It varies year to year and also on the time of the year. The best ever count was a few years ago when I watched over sixty bats come out to feed in one night.
> 
> Natrix


 I hate to show off too:blush:but we have Lesser Horseshoe Bats breeding in a buiding we use.It's cute seeing them lined up hanging from the roof with their babies attached.


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## Natrix (Dec 9, 2006)

laurencea said:


> have you told the BCT?
> 
> can i come round with my bat detector?
> 
> ...


We are registered as a bat roost and yes we had the local Batman come around and observe the site over several weeks. He registered Pipestrels, Noctules and Long eared bats. 
We now have to get permission before doing anything to the roof. 
They think my roof is used for mating and possibly hibernation. The house next door is the Nursery roost and the farm opposite gets used as a Batchelor pad by the males.

Natrix


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## Natrix (Dec 9, 2006)

Woodsman said:


> I hate to show off too:blush:but we have Lesser Horseshoe Bats breeding in a buiding we use.It's cute seeing them lined up hanging from the roof with their babies attached.


I'm jealous. My bats live under the roof tiles so I only get to see them as they drop out of the roof from under the guttering or if one is ill and falls to the ground, which is very rare.

Natrix


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