Reptile Habitat Assessment in accordance with Natural England and Froglife guidance.
Presence/absence surveys for reptiles including Slow-worm, Common Lizard, Grass Snake, following industry standard guidelines and methodology.
Preliminary roost appraisals: An assessment of buildings, trees and surrounding habitats to determine their suitability for roosting bats.
Nocturnal bat surveys: Night-time surveys using bat recording and night vision equipment to confirm the absence/presence of bats at a building or tree.
For more information see the helpsheet What to Expect From a Bat Survey: A guide for UK home owners from the Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (CIEEM).
Surveying a site for evidence of badgers such as setts, tracks, latrines and hairs.
Using camera traps to record nocturnal badger activity.
Breeding bird surveys: A site which has the potential to support nesting birds may require a survey to assess its importance as a breeding location. The surveys should be conducted at the time when birds are making nests, laying eggs and rearing young, usually between March and August. We have experience of a number of bird survey techniques depending on the habitat; for example the MacKinnon Lists Technique for woodland species.
Barn owl surveys: Following good practice guidelines from the Barn Owl Trust we look for evidence such as nests, roosting sites, pellets, droppings, prey remains and feathers. We hold a barn owl class licence issued by Natural England. This licence permits our ecologist to disturb a nesting barn owl by observation in the course of undertaking presence or absence surveys; nest monitoring; monitoring the effectiveness of conservation efforts.
Presence/absence nocturnal surveys using torches and bottle trapping.
‘eDNA’ (environmental DNA) surveys are a relatively new alternative to full presence/absence surveys, and are respected by Natural England, and for planning purposes. Our licensed ecologists are able to undertake eDNA surveys at your site.
Presence/absence surveys for water voles following industry standard guidelines and methodology.
Signs of Water Voles looked for would typically include their droppings, latrines, burrows, feeding signs and footprints.