Ring Road: Locals going bats over plan for replacement roost sites

From this week’s Galway City Tribune – There is concern among residents living adjacent to the proposed site for a specially-created bat roost planned as part of the Galway City Ring Road project.

The roost would be created in an attempt to compensate for a number of roosts that would be lost because of the road.

Property Consultant Tom Corr, on behalf of Castlegar residents Diarmuid and Sarah Harney, told the An Bord Pleanála oral hearing that the proposal was to convert the garage of a house adjacent to his clients’ – which will be acquired by the Council – into a bat house.

The proposed bat roost is to be located on Spellman’s Boreen, just off School Road in Castlegar.

Mr Corr sought clarity on the number of bats that would use such a roost; the type of animals who prey on bats; the noise levels associated with a bat roost; the maintenance that would be required to ensure the bat roost would not become an eyesore; and if it were possible to locate this bat roost at a location that was not directly adjacent to his clients’ boundary wall.

Ecologist for the project designers, Aebhin Cawley, said there were a range of different species of bats occurring right throughout the area – with the roost in question being created to house the Long Brown-Eared and the Lesser Horse Shoe varieties.

Ms Cawley said it was difficult to give an indication of the number of bats that would be present in such a roost, but that it would not be thousands, and was unlikely to be more than 100.
This is a preview only. To read the rest of this article and extensive coverage from the An Bord Pleanála oral hearing, see this week’s Galway City Tribune. Buy a digital edition of this week’s paper here, or download the app for Android or iPhone.