Bat Watch 2024 – Sharp Eyes Needed!
BAT WATCH – Sharp Eyes Needed!
Hello, bat roost owners, stewards, and counters. The sun is shining, the snow is melting, and hopefully, the bats are stretching their wings, getting ready to come out and play. BEEPS and the bats need your help to report bat activity in your neighbourhood in order to track arrival dates in spring. Mark your calendars and please check your roost every two weeks starting now and report the date you first notice bats at your roost site. Because white-nose syndrome may cause early emergence from hibernation, this can help us track disease spread. Once bats are back, kindly monitor regularly for dead bats and report any carcasses so we can report to other conservation organizations and stakeholders.
Call BEEPS with findings: (250) 767 2143 or email: pr******@be************.com
Adopt a Bat – Fun & Learning for all ages
Bat “parents” receive:
- A one-year membership in BEEPS
- Official Certificate of Adoption
- Information about Yuma & Little Brown bats
- A species profile
- Special bat gift
- Updates on the life cycle of your pup
- Emails with games and fun
Bat Counts
Each spring, hundreds of Yuma and Little Brown bats come back to their attic roost in the Peachland Historic Schoolhouse, usually from late April to early May. Sleeping all day conserves energy, and in the evening, they leave through the slats in the dormers, swoop across to the lake for a sip and hunt for food. A single bat can eat nearly half its weight in bugs each night. Although they can be spotted just after dusk from mid-May until mid to late September, BEEPS holds regular bat counts on Fridays at twilight in July and August. We invite the public to come down and learn about our furry flying friends and help us count them. Squeaks and chirps can be heard as the bats fly around the area, hunting for their dinner, and our new echo meters identify species by their unique calls. The number of bats increases significantly in this maternity colony as pups are born, generally early in June. At 3-4 weeks of age, the pups start to leave the roost with their mothers to hunt insects, so we really need the help of sharp-eyed bat counters to record the numbers that plunge out of the building!
Bat counts are held in many areas across the country and provide information vital to tracking the numbers and general health of the species. The information collected is recorded and shared with scientists, government departments, and conservationists for their research.
If you would like to participate in this unique learning experience that supports the protection of these mammals, please check our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/BEEPSPeachland for the start times (plus extra counts) during the summer. You can email pr******@be************.com for more info and register for summertime Friday night bat counts.
We can’t wait to meet you there, and thank you for your support! #SavetheBats
Mystery Lane Bat Walk
Explore the bat corridor along Waldo Way between 4th and 6th streets, to discover clues and fun bat facts as you follow the purple bat flags from the Community Centre to the Little Schoolhouse. Self-guided or contact us for a customized group tour: pr******@be************.com
Bat House Interpretive Trail
Want to learn more about bats while exploring Peachland? Join us on this long-time favourite educational stroll that highlights bats, their importance to our ecosystem, and how we can best support and nurture them. Self-guided or contact us for a customized group tour: pr******@be************.com.
BEEPS in the Vineyard
Book a tour to learn the many ways in which bats are beneficial to all types of agriculture, as you tour the award-winning Hainle Vineyards Estate Winery and grounds. Enjoy a tasting! Contact us for a customized group tour: pro*****@be************.com
Bat Chats
These popular, long-running get-togethers have been enjoyed by individuals, on-demand at various locations, as well as by invitation for groups both on and off-site. Kids of all ages are captivated by the age-appropriate content and enthusiasm of our presenters. A PowerPoint presentation followed by Q&A and a bat-themed craft rounds out this 1-2 hour presentation. Book at: pro*****@be************.com
Contact us for details about how your group can enjoy a customized, experience or tour that includes story-telling, and a bat craft.
Email pr******@be************.com
Bat Houses
Bat House Education: In order to attract bats and help mitigate habitat loss, BEEPS sells bat houses constructed using biologist-approved best practices for materials and design. Each handmade house can be personalized with graphics & text and comes with instructions for installation in the optimal location. In part, a fundraiser for our organization, bat boxes are under study, so we ask you to provide information and updates on your bat house. The information is vital to determine the general health of BC bats and is shared with BCBats.ca. You may also wish to take part in the North American Bat Monitoring Program (NABat).
Bat House Registry: BEEPS strives to monitor bat house activity by checking in with the owners of bat houses, to better understand where bats may be residing and to gain insights into their local distributions. We’ve created a map indicating the location of established bat houses, as well as indicating their occupancy status. As of October 2021, BEEPS has registered 27 bat houses within Peachland and West Kelowna. Twenty of those are located in Peachland, with 40% known to be inhabited, and the seven registered bat houses in West Kelowna/Westbank have an occupancy rate of 43% inhabited. BEEPS continues to search out locations of other community bat houses, to add to this comprehensive study, so chime in if you have resident bats in your house.
Bat ouse Registy
Contact us to arrange your purchase: ba*******@be************.com
Bat House Building Workshop: Adults and children are encouraged to learn or finetune techniques from a master bat house builder. You will be proud of your finished creation, which will include location and mounting instructions. These events are limited capacity and take approximately 3 hours, and all materials are included. Watch for dates and times, then contact us to book your spot. ba*******@be************.com
Bat Friendly Gardens
A bat friendly garden consists of native or naturalized plant species that directly benefit bats by attracting and supporting their prey. Fragrant plants, especially those that produce white or light-coloured flowers, and plants that bloom and produce nectar in the late afternoon or evening, are more likely to attract nocturnal insects such as moths and fruit flies. Inviting bats into your outdoor living space can significantly reduce, if not eliminate the number of irritating, biting insect pests. Aromatic herbs, such as oregano, basil and mint, are mostly non-native to the Okanagan Region but are also highly attractive to pollinators. These gardens will not only provide foraging spaces for bats but will also support local biodiversity by serving pollinators. So far BEEPS has assisted in the creation of three, bat-friendly public gardens located at Hainle Estate Winery, The Peachland Historic School and the Little Schoolhouse as illustrated below.
Staffed by volunteers, our bat-related activities are funded by kind donations and sponsorships (unless otherwise specified) that support ongoing bat conservation.
Contact us for details about how your group can enjoy a customized guided tour that includes story-telling, and a bat craft.
Email pr******@be************.com.