The bat workers of Ireland are uniting! A new umbrella organisation has been launched recently as a voice for the ever increasing number of bat groups in Ireland. To date, bat groups have been organised in Northern Ireland and in counties Dublin, Cork, Kerry, Galway, Tipperary, Meath and Cavan in the Republic and there are plans for further groups in other counties.

Using the Bat Conservation Trust as its benchmark organisation, Bat Conservation Ireland, will act as an umbrella body to disseminate information to each regional group, respond to public enquiries about bats through its bat Helpline, produce information and resources on these animals and organise events and surveys.

A membership base will be organised to give weight to the issues of threats to bats in the Irish countryside, to highlight the conservation and heritage value of these animals as beneficial species, to lobby government for changes or additions to the wildlife laws, to address bat conservation issues in relation to proposed developments and to ensure consideration of bats and their needs are incorporated in the early stages of planning.

A summer Bat Officer will be employed to respond to public enquiries and develop further bat groups by visiting areas where interest exists to co-ordinate the local bat workers into a formal structure and advise them of the resources available both in Ireland and abroad to promote the conservation of bats.

The Heritage Council has provided generous funding for BCI to set up and maintain a national bat database which will collate and log information on bat roosts, distribution and occurrence on the island of Ireland. This project aims to centralise information which is currently found fragmented across the island in Environmental Impact Assessment reports, various survey results, one-off sightings and bat group records. It will also collate historical information on past surveys. This database will be user friendly to allow far flung bat workers to input data directly, wherever they may be.

Of the ten species so far found in Ireland, two are of international importance; the lesser horseshoe bat and Leisler's bat. Furthermore, Ireland, north and south, has ratified two European conventions on bats and is under an obligation to protect these much maligned creatures for future generations. BCI will act as a watchdog to ensure that the governments live up to their responsibilities under EU legislation.

The numbers of bat species found in Ireland are increasing. A tenth species - Brandt's bat - was discovered last summer but it not known if this is a resident as a roost has yet to be found. However, there may be other, as yet, undiscovered species out there and to find them we need more interested volunteers armed with bat detectors in all areas. Education and training are, therefore, essential. BCI will organise Bat Detector Workshops to offer training to survey volunteers and interested individuals. The first was held in Slane, Co. Meath, in May. Further details are available on BCI's web site.

BCI volunteers will also be taking part in the Heritage Council and National Parks and Wildlife Service funded National Car Bat Transect Survey in the summer of 2004 which was successfully piloted last year with the guidance of BCT.

Ireland, north and south, is one bio-geographical landmass and BCI hopes to build cross-border relations to ensure the conservation of bats is not hampered by political boundaries. To this end, the Northern Ireland Bat Group is represented on the Council of Bat Conservation Ireland along with representatives of bat groups from the Republic so all can work together in a truly cross-border initiative to ensure the future of Ireland's bats, north and south, is watched over and given the value it deserves.