In collaboration with Fundación Parques Reunidos, Murciélagos Málaga runs a wild bat conservation programme at SELWO Aventura Estepona, combining bat box installation, acoustic monitoring and regular inspections.
The aim is to understand how bats use the park and generate evidence to guide their conservation.
The project in numbers
15
bat boxes installed
8,160
validated acoustic passes
≥9
taxa detected
1,005
feeding buzzes
Acoustic results: four complete nights in May 2026. Identifications are assigned to species or genus according to acoustic confidence. Acoustic passes represent recorded activity, not a count of individual bats.
A network that grows through monitoring
The first five bat boxes were installed in June 2025. On 15 February 2026, we documented the first occupancy: a bat consistent with the genus Pipistrellus, together with droppings, in box RQ-014. The observation was made using an endoscopic camera, without capturing the animal.
In March 2026, we expanded the network to fifteen boxes. Subsequent inspections in May and August did not detect direct occupancy. Monitoring continues to understand how use of the boxes changes over time.
Listening to understand the park
The May survey documented a diverse bat community and numerous feeding buzzes. These findings provide information about nocturnal use of the park and help guide further observations and conservation measures.
The August 2026 acoustic survey is awaiting completion of the analysis and inclusion in the next report.
Digital resources for environmental education
Conservation programmes for other parks
SELWO demonstrates how a bat box network and monitoring programme can be integrated into zoo management. MuMa provides technical site selection, installation, inspections, acoustic analysis and monitoring reports.
Each programme is tailored to the habitats, facilities and objectives of the organisation.