82 BIRD HAUNTS AND NATURE MEMORIES 



expanse of the outstretched wings of the noctule reaches 

 13 or 14 inches, and as it flies before the light has faded, 

 often before the swifts have vanished, it is a conspicuous 

 object against the evening sky. 



Donovan, in 1820, said of the noctule that it " is of a 

 colour far less dismal than that of the common bat/' and 

 though the pelage of the pipistrelle is hardly dismal, the 

 fur of the noctule is a beautiful ruddy brown, almost 

 golden at certain seasons. The question of the seasonal 

 and age variation in colour of mammals is not fully in- 

 vestigated, and the researches in bats have yielded little 

 result. Barrett-Hamilton found no evidence of change in 

 the noctule, but thought it probable that the colour was 

 richest just before hibernation that is, after the season's 

 activity and constant feeding. Old males, I have always 

 found, are far more golden than immature bats. These 

 aged males, at the height of the breeding season, are 

 wonderfully sleek and glossy. Donovan's picture of the 

 noctule was, I hope, drawn from memory; the colour is 

 curious, and it possesses a leaf nose not unlike a vampire, 

 whilst the tragus is depicted as long and pointed instead of 

 short and rounded. Bingley's plate, published in 1809, 

 is far better. The Rev. W. Bingley is little known as an 

 authority on British animals, but of mammals in particular 

 he was a careful observer, deserving a better reputation 

 than he enjoys. At last we can boast good figures of our 

 British bats, for Mr. Thorburn's lifelike pictures can 

 hardly be improved. 



The noctule emerges from its winter slumbers in March 

 or April, and it is usually the beginning of the latter 

 month before it is much in evidence; it has been seen 

 flying in February and exceptionally earlier. In Sep- 

 tember, if the weather is suitable, it is abundant until the 

 end of the month, and often is abroad regularly in the 

 early part of October, but a November noctule is rare. 



