Bat in broad daylight
This rare footage of a Nathusius' Pipistrelle was shot from the Observatory at WWT London Wetland Centre by Jonny Rex on Wednesday 17 October.
The bat was hunting at around 5.30pm, which suggests it may have been roosting nearby. Feeding in daylight is a risky strategy for bats as it puts them at risk from the more skilful avian predators such as hobbies or peregrines.
First impressions were that it was a big bat (such as a Noctule) - as it was flying quite high above the water and occasionally performed stoops. However, the stoops were comparatively shallow compared to that of a Noctule - but nonetheless quite evident feeding 'behaviour' of this particular individual. We used a Bat Box 3 detector to confirm i.d. - it was quite clear the bat was a Nathusius' Pipistrelle, as peak echolocation frequency was at 38 kHz.
