From next year, the bats of Geneva will be given a helping hand, thanks to a new initiative from the local council. Authorities in the city will be dimming streetlights in several areas to help promote biodiversity and support wildlife in the city.
In a statement, the city of Geneva announced that it will be dimming its streetlights to help support the local bat population. Between May and September next year - the main gestation period for our furry, winged friends - public lighting will be reduced and even switched off completely in the Petite Rade, the Parc des Cropettes and the Pont des Acacias.
The city confirmed that it would be testing the idea to begin with, in order to "establish the feelings and the degree of acceptability of the population with regard to the reduction in light." The plans are in line with their commitment "to reduce its impact on the climate and combat the collapse of biodiversity."
A total of 28 different species of bat are found in and around Lake Geneva and play a vital role in the local ecosystem.
Masters of living, eating and flying at dusk and night, bats are known to be severely impacted by streetlights. According to the Bat Conservation Trust, as they mainly hunt insects during dawn and dusk - when insects are most numerous - the addition of artificial light confuses most bats, making them feed either too late or too early. If a bat’s roost is permanently covered by sun and artificial light, it can lead to them being entombed.
Slower species of bat tend to avoid street-lit areas completely, disrupting their flight routes and leaving them with fewer spaces to hunt for food. Those that do venture near streetlights are then hunted by birds of prey. By dimming its lights, Geneva is giving its nocturnal flyers more places to eat, fly and breed.