Press Release
NEW DORSET HOLIDAY HOME SITE SILVERLAKE BUILDS ITS FIRST HOUSE…FOR BATS
For further information please contact Paul Charles / Laura Bardell / Sarah Rigler / Frankie Matthews / Debra Fisher
+44 (0)20 7792 8884
lowermillestate@verypcc.com
Foundations have been laid and the roof tiled on the first house to be built at Silverlake – the Bat House. Completed just a few days ago, the house has been designed specifically for the brown long-eared bat species which hibernate in warm and dark conditions such as caves and tunnels. Offering various entry points and shelter from the outside, the Bat House is designed to be used as a feeding or maternity roost.
The Bat House is just the start of nature conservation efforts by Silverlake, Habitat First Group’s newest development site in Dorset. Designed with Dorset based ecological consultancy, KP Ecology, the house has been created from an old sand hopper, previously used on the site when it was a working quarry.
The converted sand hopper will offer shelter for a roost of brown long-eared bats, which are known for having ears almost as long as their bodies. Nearby woodlands also offer a prime hunting ground for the bat species that feed on moths, beetles and spiders. As studies have shown a decline in numbers of the brown long-eared bat, the new Bat House is an important project for Habitat First Group which hopes to increase the numbers of the species and others by providing a safe roosting location.
Dr Phoebe Carter, Habitat First Group’s Ecologist, says, “Our Bat House is the first step we are taking towards bat conservation at Silverlake. Natural roosting sites for bats are becoming scarcer due to habitat loss, and their populations are also being affected by an increase in pesticide use, which is impacting on their insect-prey. We hope that the Bat House will provide a perfect roost for the bats as they come out of hibernation in spring.”
Silverlake will offer high-quality holiday accommodation, in addition to world-class nature conservation, on the site of the existing Warmwell Quarry. Habitat First Group, which also owns the award-winning and high-quality sustainable holiday development at Lower Mill Estate in the Cotswolds, is developing the site just outside Dorchester. Up to 1,000 environmentally friendly holiday chalets and lodges, a country club and spa will be built, with a focus on protecting hundreds of species of wildlife on the 650-acre site, as well as reinvigorating the local economy.
FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT:
About Habitat First Group:
Habitat First Group creates private, vacation home communities that share a love for mother nature. By combining excellence in architecture, interior design, facilities, security and service, homeowners can escape from the rigours of big city living. Habitat First Group offers an oasis of space where families can holiday comfortably and responsibly, safely explore and re-energise in acres and acres of natural habitat.
Founded and run by the Paxton family, Silverlake is the sister development to the award-winning Lower Mill Estate in the Cotswolds.