As a child growing up in a city, getting a glimpse of a bat was a real bonus, especially as I was one of those kids who lifted stones looking for slow worms and constantly had my head in ponds and rivers looking for anything moving! My zest for exploring the natural world was nurtured by the people around me, who encouraged me to explore woodlands and rivers. Sometimes, just the slightest opportunity to explore can change a child’s mindset. Allowing the next generation to explore the world at night can only lead to a positive direction for bat conservation.

Moths are a fantastic way of introducing children to the natural world, as some of them are remarkably beautiful and can be easily caught in a humane moth trap. You can see the gears in their minds turning as they envision a hawk moth soaring over their gardens. Additionally, holding the moths is often a new experience for them, fostering confidence and an understanding of how to handle living creatures.

This leads nicely on to bats, as many eat the moths, so building that link helps them understand how the food chain works at night. We often then get asked, “Well, what do the moths eat?” Fantastic, now we are discussing the best plants for the garden to attract moths. Will a pond help? Should I plant a tree? And so on!

It is a privilege to see kids especially working it all out and planning how they are going to make their garden more wildlife friendly, backed by parents of course, and a lovely project to do as a family. Enjoying sitting in the garden on an evening together watching the world slowly quieten down, and the night world slowly waking up is a fantastic thing.

In recent years, my business has taken people out on the river at night in canoes, kayaks, and stand-up paddleboards, mainly to see bats. On warm, clear nights, the bats often fly just a foot away from paddlers, giving us close encounters. Bat detectors let us listen to them, which is a popular topic of discussion. It’s also easy to see what the bats are feeding on as the river’s surface comes alive.

Bats aren’t the only thing we see at that time of the day, Beaver, Otter and Owls have also been seen which really adds to the wonder of the secret evening world.

Children will respect what they care about, so getting them to feel a close relationship with Bats by having an up close experience and a little knowledge is a fantastic direction to head.