SOUNDS: Natterer's bats are moderately vocal in the roost and can be heard just before emergence. With a bat detector (heterodyne) they sound similar to Daubenton's bats. However, the sound is more like the gentle sound of stubble burning. Echolocation calls are loudest at 50kHz and are extremely broadband, sweeping through a great range of frequencies. It is often the case that this bat passes unnoticed due to the quietness of its call. The pulse repetition rate is very high and is the most irregular of the three Myotis species present in Northern Ireland.

Click here to hear echolocation calls of a Natterer's bat slowed down 10 times

To hear the sound in an external media player please click here.

© Jon Russ 2001. Text refereed by Angela Ross & Lynne Rendle.

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