Basic Bat Detectors
These are the 'heterodyne' bat detectors, that allow you to hear the bats' calls but don't allow recording for later analysis.
Heterodyne bat detectors produce the nicest audible rendition of bat calls but generally need to be manually tuned to specific frequencies to enable you to hear the bats that call on those frequencies and make it easier to identify some to species. Batscanner models do the tuning for you, by locking onto the loudest bat call.
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These bat detectors are listed according to price, with the most affordable at the top.
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Note that you get a free extra year's warranty with all bat detectors from us!
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Magenta Bat4
With 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and Lifetime Backup & Support
With a Magenta Bat Detector you can listen to ultrasonic chirps, smacks and clicks from these amazing creatures. Special circuitry detects the human-inaudible sounds emitted by bats and processes them into a form that human hearing can discern.
The Magenta Bat4 Bat Detector is a completely new detector developed from our experience with previous designs.
All the good features of the original are there, including high level audio output, and built-in front-facing weatherproof loudspeaker.
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These are the bat detectors that most of us started off on, but bear in mind how far 'into' bats you might dive (swoop?).
Batbox Baton
With 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and Lifetime Backup & Support
The Baton is a simple but versatile bat detector having a monitor speaker allowing reduction of frequencies between 20kHz to 120kHz. The division factor is 10, reducing the sounds of a 50kHz bat to 5kHz. The unit comes with a version of BatScan sound analysis software, developed especially for the Baton. In addition, if attached to the soundcard of a laptop computer by a stereo lead from the ‘line out’ of the Baton, it will produce real-time sonograms, allowing detailed analysis of calls when used with BatScan software.
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For hand-held use, the Baton allows you to hear all of the bats at all frequencies, but it doesn't tell you which frequencies you're listening to, making it impossible to identify the bats to species without connecting it to a recorder and analysing them later, or connecting to a computer for live sonogram display.
Magenta Bat5
With 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and Lifetime Backup & Support
The new Magenta Bat5 Digital Quartz Bat Detector has a backlit 4 digit LCD frequency display, a high stability, easily tuned local oscillator and advanced amplification and filtering circuits. The microphone is a low noise analogue MEMS device with an extended high frequency range.
Extended 10 - 130kHz frequency range; large 4 digit LCD frequency display with RED backlighting for easy visibility day and night. Quartz accurate -always calibrated displaying frequency to within 0.1kHz. Front-facing weatherproof speaker, built in led torch, wrist strap, headphone and tape sockets. Uses 4 AAA batteries (plain, or rechargeable types).
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In short, this one is easier to use because of the digital frequency display!
Batbox III D
With 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and Lifetime Backup & Support
The Batbox III D is a heterodyne bat detector, which incorporates the latest technology, whilst retaining all the best qualities of its predecessor. The easy-to-read digital display, single-handed operation, high sensitivity and robustness make it an essential field tool for the professional or amateur bat worker.
A high quality, low noise ultrasonic bat detector used in universities, conservation and environment departments and by thousands of amateur naturalists throughout the world.
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This is a really nice bat detector and, like everything from Batbox, is very well made and exudes quality.
Pettersson D100
With 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and Lifetime Backup & Support
The basic heterodyne detector. Features a microphone system for maximum sensitivity. With backlit frequency dial for easy reading at night.
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Similar to the Magenta Bat4, with a frequency dial and volume control, but no digital frequency display. Pettersson units are top quality.
Elekon Batscanner
With 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and Lifetime Backup & Support
Detect bat calls easier than ever. Just turn on and listen - that's all. The ultrasonic sounds are automatically transformed into the audible range. Nothing needs to be adjusted. What makes the BATSCANNER unique is that the mixing frequency is determined and readjusted automatically by the call frequency of the bats.
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A really nice detector that automatically scans for the loudest bat, tunes into it, tells you the peak frequency of the call and plays it for you in real time. This overcomes the main failing of the heterodyne detectors that you have to tune in manually, like an old radio. Made in Switzerland, so they must be good, right?
Elekon Batscanner Stereo
With 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and Lifetime Backup & Support
The BATSCANNER STEREO is an easy to use bat detector. It converts the ultrasonic bat calls into an audible frequency with the 'mixer' principle (heterodyne). What makes the BATSCANNER STEREO unique is that the mixing frequency is adjusted and displayed automatically for the detected bat species. Thus, the different bat species can be heard without manual tuning and its main frequency can be seen easily.
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A really nice detector that automatically scans for the loudest bat, tunes into it, tells you the peak frequency of the call and plays it for you in real time. This overcomes the main failing of the heterodyne detectors that you have to tune in manually, like an old radio. This model also enables you to tell which direction the bat is calling from, if you use headphones. Made in Switzerland, so they must be good, right?
Pettersson D200
With 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and Lifetime Backup & Support
Small and low weight heterodyne detector with backlit, large digit, accurate digital display, showing the tuned frequency. The frequency and volume controls are on the side of the case, making it easy to adjust.
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Similar to the Magenta Bat5 and Batbox III D in that it's manually tuneable and has a digital frequency display. Pettersson units are top quality.
Sony Headphones
With 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and Lifetime Backup & Support
These headphones are comfortable and good quality, ideal for use with bat detectors as well as MP3 players and other portable units. Has 30mm drivers for excellent sound reproduction.
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I use these myself, both with bat detectors and for other stuff. Good value.
Bat Detective Book & CD
With 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and Lifetime Backup & Support
This book, together with the accompanying CD, provides an essential reference for bat enthusiasts who would like to gain or improve their skills in identifying British bats, using a bat detector. The material is suitable for those who have just acquired a bat detector as well as for more experienced bat workers. The sounds of 13 bat species are included in the 48 tracks of the CD. This is the first ever comprehensive compilation of British bat recordings on compact disc.
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With recordings of what the bats sound like on a heterodyne bat detector, this makes it much easier to work out which species you're listening to. If you know the peak frequency of the bat and the 'pattern' of the call, with this guide you can identify many of our commonest bats to species. Others are a little harder!
British Bat Calls
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Knowledge of bat echolocation, calls and identification using bat detectors and programs such as BatSound has grown significantly in the last decade. In this practical guide Jon Russ and contributors (Kate Barlow, Philip Briggs & Sandie Sowler) present the latest data in a clear and concise manner.
The book covers topics such as the properties of sound; how bats use sound; bat detection methods; recording devices; analysis software; recording techniques and call analysis. For each species found in the British Isles, information is given on distribution; emergence times; flight and foraging behaviour; habitat; and echolocation including parameters for common measurements.
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If you want to get further 'into' bats and their calls, this is an essential addition to your bookshelf.
Social Calls of the Bats of Britain and Ireland
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Bats are fascinating mammals about which we still have much to learn. As well as using ultrasonic echolocation calls for orientation and while foraging, they also have a complex array of vocalisations for communication. These are known as social calls and are an essential component of their colonial lifestyle.
This book brings together the current state of knowledge of social calls relating to the bat species occurring within Britain and Ireland, with some additional examples from species represented elsewhere in Europe. It includes access to a downloadable library of calls to be used in conjunction with the book.
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When you've mastered echolocation calls it's time to dive (swoop?) into social calls and this book, or the one below, is the place to start.
Social Calls of the Bats of Britain and Ireland (second edition)
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This updated and expanded edition includes additional information and new examples not found in the first edition (further down this page). The call library now includes full spectrum sound files, as well as many new examples. Survey guidelines are included in the book.
The social calls of bats are an area about which relatively little is known, with more research still required to expand our understanding. This book summarises what is understood so far about social calls of the bat species occurring in Britain and Ireland, and north-west Europe.
This new edition contains: foreward by Michel Barataud, author of Acoustic Ecology of European Bats; almost double the number of figures and tables as the first edition; completely overhauled call library, all in full spectrum, with new examples; three entirely new chapters, covering bat-related acoustics, settings for social interactions, and survey guidelines.
An excellent update on the first edition.
Bat Calls of Britain and Europe
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A comprehensive guide to the calls of the 44 species of bat currently known to occur in Europe. Following on from the popular British Bat Calls by Jon Russ, this new book draws on the expertise of more than forty specialist authors to substantially update all sections, further expanding the volume to include sound analysis and species identification of all European bats.
Written by Jon Russ, a well-respected bat worker and author of British Bat Calls.
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Expanding the focus into bats on the European mainland and substantially updating all sections of British Bat Calls, this is an excellent book.
The Handbook of Acoustic Bat Detection
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An accessible and comprehensive guide to all things acoustic bat detection. This highly illustrated handbook provides an in-depth understanding of acoustic detection principles, study planning, data handling, properties of bat calls, manual identification of species, automatic species recognition, analysis of results, quality assurance and the background physics of sound.
Written by Volker Runkel, Guido Gerding & Ulrich Marckmann and translated by Iain Macmillan.
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Essential reading if you want to understand the fundamentals of bat detection and call analysis.
Is That a Bat?
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The occurrence of non-bat sounds during bat surveys can be distracting, intriguing or annoying. Recordings can include difficult to ID species of bat but also sounds not related to bats. This can be especially true when noise triggers such as insects, small mammals or birds look like bat-related noise. Therefore, only knowing what bats sound like is not enough. It's extremely useful to know what other sources of noise look and sound like within the same soundscape. This book will help bat workers, in whatever environment they're in, to be more confident in recognising, categorising and dismissing other sounds. The book includes a substantial downloadable sound library (.wav format) that readers can listen to by ear or process through sound analysis software.
Written by Neil Middleton, a well-respected bat worker and author of Social Calls of the Bats of Britain & Ireland, as well as The Effective Ecologist.
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Essential reading if you want to avoid confusion with non-bat sounds.
Bats of Britain and Europe
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This concise and definitive guide presents all 45 bat species that regularly occur in Europe (of which 17 are known to breed in the British Isles). The extensive introduction details the remarkable biology of bats and explores the latest findings in bat evolution, behaviour and echolocation.
This is followed by in-depth species accounts covering life history, conservation status and identification, including echolocation characteristics, and complemented by accurate distribution maps, with the book illustrated throughout with superb colour photography.
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A really good introduction to the bats that are regularly found in Europe, including the British Isles, with distribution maps so you know which you're likely to be hearing.
