WILDLIFE experts are celebrating after the installation of 120 bat boxes in woodland around Burrator Reservoir attracted 124 bats of five different species in a year.

Bats have taken up residence much more quickly than would normally be expected after the bat boxes provided the extra roosting sites the threatened mammals needed.

The scheme, a partnership between South West Water, South West Lakes Trust and the Devon Bat Group, was aimed at supporting and increasing the bat population at Burrator. Nationally, bat numbers have declined by up to 47% in some species since the 1940s due to persecution and habitat loss.

Boxes of different sizes and types were put up in October 2010 and monitored every month for a year. Almost 70% of the boxes showed evidence of use by bats.

Planted with commercial conifer trees since the 1920s, Burrator has shelter and foraging opportunities for bats, but roosting locations are fairly limited to certain areas of the broadleaf woodland, buildings, and old mine workings.

The bat boxes were placed four metres high in trees of different types on 2,226 hectares of South West Water land, which is managed by South West Lakes Trust.

They were put up and checked by volunteers from all three organisations. Bat species found in the studies were Common pipistrelle, Soprano pipistrelle, Brown long-eared bat, Barbastelle bat, and Whiskered bat.

Paul McNie, an environment manager at South West Water, said: 'As a water company we are also custodians of many thousands of acres of land covering many types of habitat. We are delighted to work in partnership with the Devon Bat Group and South West Lakes Trust to enhance biodiversity on our land.'

Neil Reeves, conservation officer at the South West Lakes Trust, said: 'Given the relatively upland setting, the take-up of the boxes is amazing. The reservoir, rivers, and the way we manage the habitat produce high levels of invertebrates for foraging bats, but the high percentage of coniferous forest doesn't support the potential population with roosting opportunities.'

Nick Bentham-Green, chair of the Devon Bat Group, said: 'The land around Burrator Reservoir is a rich habitat for bats. The new bat boxes have been the final piece of the jigsaw which we hope will support and boost bat populations.'