The RSPB at Weymouth Wetlands are inviting people to their Radipole Lake reserve to meet some of the stars of the night.

The team are running more of their very popular bat walks on the next two Fridays, July 13 and 20, so book early to avoid disappointment.

Resident bat man Dan Bartlett will be running the events with RSPB volunteers and as usual, they will start with a fascinating talk about these beautiful and magical mammals.

Said Dan: “Then as dusk falls, we’ll go off round the reserve armed with detectors that pick up the calls bats use to echolocate and find their prey, usually moths and other large insects.”

“On a good night, we can expect to find four or five species including the common pipistrelle, the Daubentons or water bat and then larger ones like the noctule and serotin.”

Bats are the only true flying mammal and they account for more than a quarter of mammal species in the UK and around a fifth of all mammal species worldwide. Dan will also be debunking a few myths about bats.

“For instance, they’re not blind although they do hear better than they see, making very high pitched calls and using the returning echo to get a picture of what is around them in the dark. They are excellent navigators so they’re not likely to fly into your hair no matter how close they might get!”

The bat events are on from 8pm until late, starting from The RSPB Wild Weymouth Discovery Centre in the town’s Swannery car park.

Booking is essential and there is a fee, which goes towards the charity’s conservation work. Call 01305 778313 for more information or to book a place.

You can find out more about what’s going on at Weymouth Wetlands by following their blog at www.rspb.org.uk/community/groups/weymouthwetlands or joining them on twitter @RSPBWeymouth