Many, if not all, of the buildings that will be offered grants by the Heritage Council under the REPS4 Traditional Farm Buildings Scheme are likely to be used by nesting birds, as well as bats. Each grant recipient is required as a condition of the grant to commission an appropriate expert to undertake bat surveys of the buildings. This document offers guidance notes on what species to look for, what signs to look for, as well as information on the nesting seasons of the various species that have been recorded using farmyards and buildings.

This is part of our Good Practice Guidance for birds, produced by Keith Ross and James Latham.

Reference: Heritage Council and BirdWatch Ireland (Undated) Birds and the Traditional Farm Buildings Scheme: Guidance notes for experts undertaking surveys of traditional farm buildings under the Heritage Council’s Traditional Farm Buildings Scheme.