Page 10 - BBC Wildlife Volume 36 #10

WILDOCTOBER
6 | LESSER HORSESHOE BAT
Hanging around

5 | SYCAMORE Halloween invariably turns public attention
Native or not? to bats, yet most stories about these
mammals are far from the truth. For one
Naturalists are often sniffy about the thing, the popular image of bats hanging
sycamore owing to uncertainty over its upside-down, wings wrapped around their
status in Britain. The late, great dendrologist bodies like pashminas, is misleading.
Oliver Rackham pointed out that the lack of Only two British bats do this – the greater
Celtic and Saxon names for this European and lesser horseshoes, named for their
tree suggests it did not grow here in ancient strange ‘nose leafs’ (flaps of skin) that
times. But debates about whether sycamore aid echolocation. Lesser horseshoes are a
is native have made no difference to the speciality of south-west England, Wales and
enjoyment of generations of children playing western Ireland, and this month enter their
with its winged seeds in autumn. Sycamore hibernation roosts. As seen on the BBC’s
‘helicopters’ are more bent than those of field Winterwatch last January, they favour cellars,
maple – the Woodland Trust describes them tunnels and caves with consistently cool air.
as more like “Frank Zappa’s moustache”
than the “Clark Gable” of field maple. FIND OUT MORE Learn more about
UK bats at bats.org.uk
GET INVOLVED Join the survey:
naturescalendar.woodlandtrust.org.uk
ON RADIO

NATURAL
HISTORIES
Bat episode

7 | SILVER Y
Migrant moth

When mosquitoes invaded the England
vs Tunisia match at this summer’s
FIFA World Cup in Russia, it wasn’t
the first time insects had made their
presence felt at a televised sporting
event. The silver Y enjoyed its moment
in the limelight when one landed on
Portuguese striker Ronaldo during
the final of UEFA Euro 2016. This
abundant migratory moth with its
diagnostic silver squiggle travels in vast Bat: Oliver Smart; sycamore: Sylvain Cordier/naturepl.com; moth: Laurie Campbell

ON RADIO swarms in some years, when adults
hatched in Britain are boosted by large
NATURAL numbers from the Continent. Look for
HISTORIES them in most habitats, including parks
Moth episode and gardens – as well as sports fields.

FIND OUT MORE Learn more about
moths at ukmoths.org.uk

10 BBC Wildlife October 2018