Treehouse converted to bat hotel

A roost of lesser horseshoe bats will be homed in the treehouse

A disused treehouse in Worcestershire is set to be transformed into a bat hotel.

The Worcestershire Wildlife Trust is converting the wooden structure at The Knapp and Papermill Nature Reserve near Worcester, to home a roost of lesser horseshoe bats.

The treehouse will have perch points installed, as well as being insulated and made dark on the inside.

Out of the 18 species of bats that breed in the UK, 14 can be found in Worcestershire and 11 of those will roost at the reserve.

The treehouse was donated to the trust by a local family

How rare are horseshoe bats?

• Horseshoe bats are one of the rarest breeds in the UK

• Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, it is illegal to intentionally or recklessly disturb, injure or kill bats or to damage or destroy their roosts

• Lesser horseshoe bats are one of the smallest species in the UK

• They were once cave-dwellers, but now tends to roost in old buildings

• All UK bats are nocturnal, feeding on midges, moths and other flying insects

Dominique Cragg, from the Trust, told BBC Radio Hereford & Worcester the treehouse had been donated by a family.

The reserve is currently home to a maternity roost, with around 30 females who come to have their pups there in the summer, said Ms Cragg.

"The most important thing for bats is that [their homes] are high off the ground," she said.

"We're really lucky to have got a grant from the Natural Networks programme, which is a joint effort from Worcestershire County Council and Worcestershire Wildlife Trust, and that has enabled us to make these enhancements."