Bat Emergence Surveys in East Sussex

Thermal Drone Surveys for Protected Species

Large historic buildings can present challenges during bat emergence surveys. Multiple roof levels, chimneys, dormers and inaccessible elevations can create blind spots from the ground and make it difficult to observe all potential bat access locations.

The footage below was captured during a test flight at a large manor house and is being used as an example of how thermal drone technology can support bat emergence surveys on complex sites.

Aerial Ecology provides thermal drone surveys and ecological support across East Sussex and surrounding areas for bat surveys and other protected species work.

Why use thermal drones for bat surveys?

Thermal drones are not intended to replace conventional bat survey methods that already work well. Smaller buildings with straightforward visibility can often be surveyed effectively using conventional approaches alone.

However, thermal drones can provide additional value on larger or more complex sites where visibility becomes restricted.

Examples include:

• Large residential properties

• Manor houses

• Churches

• Historic buildings

• Multi-storey buildings

• Dense vegetation around structures

• Restricted or difficult survey positions

On these sites, drone methods can provide additional perspectives and help improve confidence in survey coverage while remaining integrated with conventional ecological survey techniques.

Typical Survey Design

For a site such as this, drones would not replace ground surveyors. Instead they would form part of a wider survey approach.

A typical survey setup may include:

Thermal drone coverage

• Elevated roof areas

• Chimneys

• Dormers

• Difficult-to-observe elevations

• Areas with limited ground visibility

Ground surveyors equipped with:

• Thermal scopes

• Ultrasound bat detectors

• Other Night vision aids where appropriate

Survey positions would then be selected to reduce blind spots and target likely access features.

Example Outputs

Typical survey outputs may include:

• Raw thermal footage

• Wildlife Imaging Systems (WIS) outputs

• Reviewed emergence events

• Short emergence clips (30 second)

• Survey interpretation and reporting

Example output from WIS