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The lesser horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus hipposideros), is a type of European insectivorous bat, related to its bigger cousin, the greater horseshoe bat. The species gets its name from its distinctive horseshoe-shaped nose.The lesser horseshoe bat lives in warmer regions in foothills and highland, particular wooded areas or areas of limestone. In summer its habitats have been recorded up to 1160m above sea level, and up to 2000m in the winter, with the highest known nursery roost at 950m. The species are sedentary, with the average movement between summer and winter roosts between 5 and 10 kilometers, although the longest recorded distance is 153 kilometers.The frequencies used by this bat species for echolocation lie between 93–111 kHz, have most energy at 110 kHz and have an average duration of 31.7 ms.[4][5] Due to the frequency of their echolocation calls there are overlaps with those of the Mediterranean horseshoe bat and Mehely's horseshoe bat.en.wikipedia.org/...
The lesser horseshoe bat
This species is protected in the European Union under the Habitats Directive. This species is also listed in the Berne Convention and is specifically targeted by the UNEP-EUROBATS convention. Several national legislation are also protecting this species and its habitats in many countries and regions.
In order to highlight the importance of protecting this species at the European scale, this species was selected as bat species of the Year 2018-2019 by the pan-European NGO BatLife Europe.[6]en.wikipedia.org/...
Samhain
Samhain is a Gaelic festival marking the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter or the "darker half" of the year. Traditionally, it is celebrated from 31 October to 1 November, as the Celtic day began and ended at sunset. This is about halfway between the autumn equinox and the winter solstice. Wikipedia
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Historians have offered various trick-or-treating origin theories. The earliest goes back to the old Celtic festival of Samhain, which ushered in “the dark half of the year” in the Northern Hemisphere.
According to legend, the realms of the living and the dead came together during this fall festival, so Celts would sometimes dress up as spirits to elude evil demons. There have also been reports of food and animal sacrifices, as well as tricks and pranks blamed on mischievous fairies visiting during this time.www.huffpost.com/...
Guardian:
Country diary 1919:
raiding the haunt of the lesser horseshoe bat
24 October 1919 After a journey in a small box, the previously moribund little animal was in a state of nervous energy
Amongst the trees on the Llandudno promenade there were a few bats flying at dusk. Some of the smaller kinds, for instance, the pipistrelle and whiskered bats, do not retire until well on in October. So long as there are crepuscular insects on the wing the bats will come out to look for them. With my Llandudno correspondent, a useful guide, I raided one haunt of the lesser horseshoe bat, a local and delicate little animal.I found two suspended from the roof at the end of a tunnel, a shaft driven in years ago by prospectors for metals. As they hung, with their small bodies enshrouded in their ample wings, really their hands, and their tails clear of their long, thin legs, they looked like pears or other fruit. Most of our common bats fold their wings along their sides when slumbering, but the horseshoes clasp themselves in their hands, one above the other: even the ears and sensitive nose-leaf, from which they get their name, is hidden. The short, upturned tail points downwards as they hang, and it is carried cocked up in flight. These bats were quite cold, respiration was hardly perceptible, and, indeed, they appeared to be moribund; yet after a short journey in a box one was in a state of nervous energy, hot to the touch, and its queer little face twitching excitedly. Hibernation, if these cave bats really do hibernate, which I doubt, is very different from the deathlike slumber of the dormouse and some other true winter sleepers.www.theguardian.com/...
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