This year's European Bat Night was once again held the Open Air Theatre within the Alameda Botanic Gardens. Over thirty people took their seats for an unscripted but daily rehearsed 'performance' by some of Gibraltar's less well known stars of the night.

As sunset approached, Albert Yome, co-ordinator for GONHS' bat activities, fielded a number of interesting questions about bats. Shortly after, as if on cue, the first bat, a Soprano pipistrelle Pipistrellus pygmaeus swooped over its unsuspecting audience. It's echolocating calls, inaudible to humans, were being picked up by our bat detector and channelled through a loudspeaker for all to hear. Several other bats subsequently visited the theatre, popular as a feeding location given the number of insects attracted by one of Gibraltar's few ponds, with at least four bats together at one point. After over an hour of almost continuous sightings and detected calls, proceedings were brought to a close and a contented group of 'theatre goers' left the scene to the bats, which flew on, indifferent to their human cousins having been there at all. A bonus for the organisers, was a calling Tawny Owl as they left having packed up their equipment until the next 'show'.