Trees and Bats
Friday 26 February 2010
Location: Dorking, Surrey
Tutor: Jonathan Bradley CEnv MIEEM
Level: Beginner - Intermediate
Do you conduct tree surgery or felling and have concerns about how bats and their protective status may conflict with your work? Do you (hope to) conduct tree surveys covering the health and safety aspects of street trees? Do you manage wooded land on behalf of a council, charity or private estate? Are you concerned that every tree you look at has Bat Roost Potential? Are you confused as to whether and when you should be advocating bat surveys of trees? Do you know when it may be acceptable to work ‘around’ bats? Do you know when it is vital to apply for a license to affect bats?
IEEM Members £80 (£70 if booked before 26 December 2009).
Non-members £160 (£140 if booked before 26 December 2009).
Further details about the workshop
Recent changes to legislation mean that failing to consider bats when conducting tree surveys or tree work operations is inexcusable, even when in possession of approved plans. This workshop contains a summary of current legislation and bat ecology, followed by an afternoon practical session looking at trees. The intended outcome is to enable attendees to assign trees to a Bat Roost Potential category and to proscribe (in line with current best practice and legislation) a way forward for dealing with potential conflict between tree care or planning applications that affect trees and bat conservation.
Who should attend this workshop?
This workshop is intended for consultant ecologists, local authority tree officers, park wardens, reserve rangers, land managers, arboricultural surveyors and tree surgeons.
Anything participants need to know/read before coming on the training event, or need to have with them?
Bring:
- waterproof outdoor clothing;
- pencil and paper;
- stout boots;
- a pack lunch; and
- binoculars.
The workshop will not cover the ecology of different bat species, nor will it involve tree identification or biology. However, the relevance of bat species, tree species and tree structure will be touched upon.
Although not essential, pre-existing knowledge in these areas will help you get the most from the course.
Suggested reading in advance is:
Mattheck, C and Breloer, H. (1998). The Body Language of Trees – A handbook for failure analysis. Research for Amenity trees No 4, HMSO.
Chapter 8 of Bat Conservation Trust (2007). Bat Surveys – Good Practice Guidelines. Bat Conservation Trust, London.
Cowan, A.(2003). Trees and Bats. Arboricultural Association Guidance Note 1 (Second Edition).
What will participants learn from the workshop (learning outcomes)?
- What to consider when surveying trees for bats.
- What to do with the information acquired.
- What is required of you, as determined by legislation, policy and best practice.
- How to devise a protocol for your organisation in its dealings with trees and bats.
The workshop should enable you to feel comfortable conducting surveys of trees in order to assign them to a Bat Roost Potential category. You will learn about the field signs to look for and, perhaps more importantly, what to do in the absence of any field signs. You will learn how to turn the survey data into a course of action. The course is NOT intended to cover the planning process relating to development.