UNEP and EUROBATS

The year 2011 has been proclaimed Year of the Bat by the UNEP-CMS (United Nations Environment Program - Convention on Migratory Species) and EUROBATS (The Agreement on the Conservation of Populations of European Bats). They seek to promote protection, scientific research and education in relation to bats.

Insectivorous bat species are the only species found in the Netherlands. On a global scale, 1,100 bat species are known and more than half are on the Red List of threatened species drawn up by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. The protection of bat species has been successful in Europe and as a result, bat populations are growing.