SGUK Outdoor Skills Challenge 51: Identify a Bat Roost in Woodland

Bats are easy to overlook during the day. While they may be active around woodland edges at dusk, they spend much of the day resting in sheltered places, including tree cavities, cracks, loose bark and other natural spaces. Learning to recognise a possible roost is a useful wildlife skill, but finding one comes with a responsibility: bats need to be left undisturbed.

For this challenge, you will look for signs that a tree or woodland feature could provide a roost, learn what evidence to look for and practise observing wildlife without disturbing it. You do not need to locate an occupied roost to complete the challenge.

Your Challenge

Your challenge is to identify a potential bat roost feature in woodland and explain why it might be suitable for bats.

You will look for features such as cavities, splits in trunks, loose bark and sheltered crevices. You will also learn how to distinguish a possible roost feature from confirmed evidence of bats, and why you should never investigate a suspected roost by touching, opening or entering it.

What You’ll Need

• A notebook or phone for recording observations.
• A camera or phone for taking a photograph from a safe distance.
• Suitable outdoor clothing.
• A familiar woodland path where you can observe trees without leaving safe, permitted routes.

You do not need specialist equipment. Binoculars can be useful if you already have them, but they are not essential.

Take the Challenge

1. Look for potential roost features

Walk slowly along a suitable woodland path and examine trees from the ground. Look for natural features that could provide shelter, including:

• Cavities in trunks or branches.
• Splits and deep cracks in the bark.
• Loose bark with a gap behind it.
• Old woodpecker holes.
• Hollow sections of standing trees.

Different bat species use different types of roost, and some switch between several locations. A feature that looks suitable does not necessarily mean bats are using it.

Do not climb trees, pull away bark, put your fingers into holes or use tools to inspect crevices. Avoid standing beneath unstable branches or deadwood while looking upwards.

2. Look for possible signs of bat activity

From a respectful distance, you may notice small, dark droppings beneath a potential roost or near a tree cavity. Bat droppings can resemble those of other small animals, so appearance alone is not always enough to identify them confidently.

At dusk, bats may emerge from roosts to feed. Watching from a distance can sometimes reveal repeated flight activity around a particular tree, although bats flying nearby does not prove that they are roosting there.

Never block an entrance, wait so close that you interfere with the animals, shine bright lights into a suspected roost or use flash photography. Do not collect droppings or handle a bat.

3. Understand what makes a roost suitable

A tree roost can offer protection from weather and predators, as well as a relatively stable place to rest. Narrow gaps and cavities can provide shelter, while different roost features may suit bats at different times of year.

Woodland with a variety of mature trees, deadwood features and connected habitats can offer a range of opportunities for bats. However, not every old or hollow tree contains bats, and some roosts are difficult to detect from the ground.

Choose one potential roost feature and record what makes it suitable. For example, you might notice a deep split in a trunk or a cavity that appears sheltered from rain.

4. Observe without disturbing

Choose a tree with a possible roost feature and take a photograph from the path or another safe, permitted position. Include enough of the tree to show the feature, but do not approach closer just to obtain a better picture.

If you happen to see a bat, keep your distance and let it move freely. Never handle a bat, even if it appears injured or grounded. If you find one that may need help, contact a licensed bat carer or the Bat Conservation Trust for advice.

Bats and their roosts are legally protected in the UK. Disturbing bats or damaging or obstructing a roost can be an offence, even when bats are not visibly present. If you suspect a roost, leave it alone.

5. Record your findings

In your notebook, describe the feature you observed and explain why it might provide shelter for a bat. Make clear whether you identified a potential roost feature or actually observed evidence of bats.

You can complete this challenge without confirming an occupied roost. Recognising suitable habitat and knowing when to leave it undisturbed are important wildlife skills in their own right.

Check Your Results

Before completing the challenge, make sure you can answer these questions:

• What are three tree features that could provide a bat roost?
• Why does a suitable-looking cavity not prove that bats are present?
• What signs might suggest bat activity?
• Why should you never inspect a suspected roost by touching or opening it?
• What should you do if you find a bat that appears injured?

If you are unsure, revisit the relevant part of the challenge and check the guidance provided by the Bat Conservation Trust.

Complete the Challenge

To complete Challenge 51, demonstrate that you can recognise a potential bat roost feature and explain how to observe it responsibly.

Your evidence should include:

• A photograph of a potential roost feature taken from a safe distance.
• A short description of the feature and why it might provide shelter.
• An explanation of one possible sign of bat activity.
• A statement explaining how you avoided disturbing wildlife.

If you do not find a suitable feature, you can photograph a tree with a cavity or split that could provide shelter and explain its potential. You do not need to find or photograph a live bat.

How to Submit Your Challenge

Submit your evidence

Once you have completed the challenge, share your evidence on your SGUK member profile so it can be checked.

1. Go to your SGUK member profile.
2. Open Social Activity.
3. Upload a photograph of your evidence to the activity wall.
4. Add the hashtag #SGUKChallenge51.
5. Share it for verification.

Include your explanation alongside the photograph. Do not reveal a sensitive roost location publicly or include photographs that show you disturbing wildlife.

Challenge 51 Checklist

Want to Push Yourself?

Learn about the different bat species found in your area and compare the types of roost features they may use. You could also visit a recognised bat walk or event led by an experienced local group.

If you observe bats at dusk, stay on permitted paths, keep noise and light to a minimum and avoid following them towards a suspected roost. The aim is to understand their behaviour without changing it.

What’s Next?

If you have not completed the previous challenge, try SGUK Outdoor Skills Challenge 50: Learn How Fog and Mist Behave in Woodland. Learn how reduced visibility affects woodland navigation and how to make safer decisions when conditions change.

You can complete the challenges in any order, so choose the skills that interest you and continue building your outdoor knowledge.

Once you’ve shared your evidence and it has been verified, the SGUK Outdoor Skills Challenge 51 is complete and the completed challenges figure will be updated on your profile.

Learn. Practise. Master.

That’s what the SGUK Outdoor Skills Challenge is all about.