€175,000 bat house proving unpopular with bats

Two years after being built at an estimated cost of €175,000 to the taxpayer, a custom-made bat house located along the route of the €205 million Ennis bypass has failed to attract a single bat.

The tiny Lesser Horseshoe Bat is protected under the European Union Habitats Directive and is listed as a vulnerable species.

As part of its contract for the bypass scheme, Gama Construction is required to put in place measures - including the construction of a purpose-built bat house - to ensure the continued welfare of the bats.

However, a report drawn up for the company by environmental consultant Howard Williams of Inis Environmental Services confirms the absence of bats at the new home.

Describing it "as the first purpose-built bat house in Ireland and the most modern in Europe", Mr Williams confirms there has been no signs of bats over the past 12 months, either inside or outside the home.

The project has been beset by problems including equipment breakdown and design flaws, though these are not blamed for the absence of the bats.

In the report released under the Freedom of Information Act, Mr Williams writes: "Though the electronic equipment and, more importantly, the heaters have not been operational, it is highly unlikely that this is the reason for their absence. It is more likely that bats in the area have yet to discover and investigate the purpose-built house."

Mr Williams reports: "No breeding activity noted. No droppings are apparent anywhere within the house or outside the house on the pavement." He speculates swallows nesting inside the entrance may be excluding the bat.

Mr Williams describes the home "as the most modern bat house in Europe, built using state-of-the-art design and monitoring equipment. Its development heralds an arrival at the higher end of nature conservation. In short, the information we will be able to analyse at this location will give us the best opportunity ever of understanding the Lesser Horseshoe Bat in Ireland."

The bat house has been kitted out with infrared beams to monitor bat movements, and a telephone line has been installed to enable the downloading of information.

Mr Williams has found, however, that a refurbished "old schoolhouse" has attracted the Lesser Horseshoe Bat, with seven recorded bats at the house in June.

He writes: "This can be seen as an immediate success as they only ever used this site as a maternity roost in the past."

The consultant, however, has not given up hope of the bats using the purpose-built home.