The Manx Wildlife Trust is the leading nature conservation charity in the Isle of Man.

It protects the fragile local wildlife by creating living landscapes, living seas and encouraging and fostering a society where nature matters.

Love is in the air for a certain species of fury little fliers during the early months of autumn.

Each month we have challenged people to help us find out more about our wildlife and this month, as their mating season begins, we are making a plea for bat sightings.

Males bats use special calls to attract females, which can include purrs, clicks and buzzing.

Bats are also building up their essential fat stores during this month for the coming months of hibernation starting in November time.

Hibernation is an extended period of deep sleep, also known as torpor, which allows animals to survive the harsh conditions of cold winters and a lack of food.

In torpor a bat may breathe less than once an hour and its heartbeat can drop to 10 beats per minute.

The hibernation sites are cool with a steady air temperature, and high humidity, they are often different from roosts used during spring and summer.

Here are our top tips for spotting bats.

Firstly, choose a dark area of which, luckily, we have many in the island.

Many bats avoid bright street lighting, so try and find a location with as little light pollution as possible.

Don’t forget to take your torch to find your way home though.

The Manx Bat group also have a handy map of the best places for bat watching around the island on their website.

Arrive just before the sun sets, as bats are easiest to spot around dusk when they come out to feed.

Try to stand in a place where you can see an open patch of sky, as it makes it easier to see the bat’s silhouettes.

For example, bridges are good places for this. Watch for the bats hunting among the over-hanging tree canopies.

Watch above a pond. Bats need to drink and you’ll often see them swooping down to take a sip of the water. Daubenton’s bats especially love to hunt for invertebrates and insects over the water.

Go out on a dry, still night. Bats don’t like hunting insects when it’s wet, as the rain confuses their echolocation system, meaning they won’t catch many insects.

If you do see any bats do report your name, date, time and location to the Manx Bat group via their website: manxbatgroup.org.

The website also provides a lot more information about the walks and talks the group runs.

Don’t forget to keep your sightings coming in for other species such as hedgehogs and wading birds on our shore lines please include these details where you saw it, the date you saw it, what it was and your contact details.

If you can, take a photograph of your find as this helps us for verification purposes.

You can email the information to [email protected] or phone us on 844432

by Dawn Colley

Biodiversity education officer

www.mwt.im