The Soprano Pipistrelle (Pipistrellus pygmaeus)
An Fheascarluch Sopranach
This species was only separated from the common pipistrelle in 1997 when genetic tests confirmed it as a separate species.
Like its sibling the common pipistrelle, the soprano pipistrelle is frequently found foraging in urban as well as rural habitats but it tends to be more associated with water as it preys on the smallest midges.
It also weighs just 4 to 8 grammes and the species is Ireland’s smallest bat. Roosts are usually in modern houses and can number in the hundreds in mid-June/July. However, like the other Irish species, they are seasonal visitors to our dwellings and they move out for the winter months.
As with the other Irish bat species, the soprano pipistrelle produces only one young, usually in June, and the juvenile is already flying by its fourth week. The first year is a difficult one as the young bat has to learn to fly, feed and find safe roost sites.
