(Pipistrellus pipistrellus)
Have you ever noticed a tiny bat flickering across the garden just as daylight fades? There's a good chance it was a Common Pipistrelle, one of Britain's most familiar bats. Barely bigger than your thumb, it hunts tiny insects with astonishing agility, often returning to the same patch of garden night after night. Look a little closer, though, and this little bat has a fascinating life hidden behind its brief appearance in the evening sky.
How to identify a Common Pipistrelle Bat
The Common Pipistrelle is one of Britain's smallest bats, with a body around 3.5–4.5cm long and a wingspan of approximately 20–23.5cm. It weighs just 3–8g.
Its fur is medium to dark brown, with a darker face and skin around the eyes. In flight, the wings look almost black against the fading light.
Common Pipistrelle at a glance
- Body length: 3.5–4.5cm
- Wingspan: 20–23.5cm
- Weight: 3–8g
- Colour: Medium to dark brown, with a dark face
- Where to look: Gardens, hedgerows, parks, woodland edges and around water
- Best time to spot one: Around dusk on a mild evening
How can you tell a Common Pipistrelle from a Soprano Pipistrelle?
This is where identification gets tricky. The Common Pipistrelle and Soprano Pipistrelle look almost identical in flight, and even a good view may not be enough to tell them apart confidently.
The most reliable distinction is usually their echolocation calls. A Common Pipistrelle typically has peak call energy around 45kHz, compared with around 55kHz for a Soprano Pipistrelle. A suitable bat detector can help reveal this difference, although identifying calls accurately takes practice.
Their behaviour offers clues, too. Common Pipistrelles are adaptable hunters, regularly using gardens, farmland, woodland edges and urban spaces. Soprano Pipistrelles are particularly associated with wetlands and other habitats near water, although the two species overlap considerably.
If you see a tiny bat zigzagging above your garden, you may be able to identify it as a pipistrelle. Knowing which species it is can take a little more detective work.
Where do Common Pipistrelles live?
Common Pipistrelles are widespread across the UK, from rural landscapes to towns and cities. They are particularly familiar around gardens, parks, hedgerows and woodland edges, where insects provide a reliable food supply.
They often follow hedges and tree lines as they travel between roosting and feeding areas. These features provide sheltered routes through the landscape, while ponds and other wet places can offer rich feeding grounds.
One reason this species is so familiar is its ability to live alongside people. Common Pipistrelles frequently roost in narrow gaps around buildings, including behind hanging tiles, soffits, bargeboards and eaves. They also use tree crevices and bat boxes.
You might never know a bat is living in your roof. A small gap can provide all the shelter it needs, and the roost may be almost invisible from the ground.
When do Common Pipistrelles come out?
Common Pipistrelles usually emerge around 20 minutes after sunset, although the timing varies with the season and weather.
Watch above a hedge, beside a tree line or over a pond as the light fades. You may see a small, erratic shape darting through the air, making quick turns as it pursues insects.
It can look rather chaotic, but every twist and turn has a purpose. The bat is following prey that may itself be moving unpredictably.
What do Common Pipistrelles eat?
Common Pipistrelles feed mainly on small flying insects, particularly flies, midges and mosquitoes. They also take other insects, including lacewings and mayflies.
They catch their prey in flight, using echolocation to locate and follow insects in the darkness. This hunting technique is known as aerial hawking.
A single Common Pipistrelle can eat thousands of tiny insects in a night. The exact number depends on how much food is available and how actively the bat feeds, but its appetite is impressive for an animal weighing so little.
Their diet helps explain why gardens can be valuable feeding grounds. A pond may attract midges, flowering plants support insects, and hedgerows provide shelter and habitat for a variety of small creatures.
The bat is not coming to the garden for food that people put out. It is there for the insects already living in it.
How do Common Pipistrelles breed?
Common Pipistrelles generally raise one pup each year.
Females gather in maternity roosts during summer, with births usually taking place in June or early July. The young depend on their mother's milk during their first weeks of life. They begin flying at around three to four weeks old and become independent a little later.
Maternity colonies often contain around 75 bats, although their size varies. Unlike some other bat species, Common Pipistrelles are known to move between maternity roosts, using different places as conditions change.
Males spend much of summer alone or in small groups. During the mating season, from around July to early September, males establish territories and attract females with social calls and repeated flights around their roosts.
These courtship flights are sometimes described as song-flights. Much of the sound is too high-pitched for us to hear unaided, but a bat detector can reveal a hidden world of calls taking place above our gardens.
Where do Common Pipistrelles go in winter?
Common Pipistrelles remain in the UK throughout winter. As insects become scarce and temperatures fall, they become less active and spend periods in sheltered roosts.
They often use crevices in buildings and trees, as well as bat boxes. Unlike some UK bats, they are rarely found hibernating in underground sites.
On a mild winter evening, a bat may occasionally emerge if conditions allow it to find food. But summer is by far the best time to look for Common Pipistrelles flying around gardens.
Are Common Pipistrelles common in the UK?
Yes. The Common Pipistrelle is widespread and is classified as Least Concern in Great Britain. It is one of the bat species people are most likely to encounter around their homes.
However, being common does not mean it is free from threats. Common Pipistrelles rely heavily on buildings for roosting, so roof repairs, renovations and inappropriate timber treatments can put colonies at risk. A reduction in insect prey and the loss of suitable habitat can also affect them.
If bats may be roosting in a building, never block an entrance or disturb the roost. All UK bat species and their roosts are legally protected, so seek specialist advice before carrying out work that could affect them.
How can you help Common Pipistrelles?
You don't need to do anything elaborate. A garden with plenty of insects, connected vegetation and dark flight routes can provide useful feeding habitat.
- Grow a variety of flowering plants to support insects through the seasons.
- Keep hedges and trees where possible, particularly along garden boundaries.
- Consider a pond or other wildlife-friendly water feature.
- Avoid pesticides that can reduce the insects bats depend on.
- Keep unnecessary artificial lighting away from hedges, ponds and tree lines.
- Consider a suitable bat box if you have an appropriate place to install one.
A bat box is not a guarantee that bats will move in, and its suitability depends on its design and position. For more detail, read our guides to Where to Put a Bat Box and Bats in Your Garden and Home.
Often, the most useful thing you can do is make the garden a better place for the insects that bats hunt.
Common Pipistrelle FAQs
How can I recognise a Common Pipistrelle in flight?
Look for a tiny, fast-moving bat making sharp turns as it hunts insects around dusk. Its dark, fluttering silhouette is characteristic of a pipistrelle, but distinguishing Common from Soprano Pipistrelle by sight alone is difficult.
Do Common Pipistrelles live in house roofs?
Yes. They often use narrow gaps around tiles, soffits, bargeboards and eaves. A roost may be almost impossible to see from outside. If you suspect bats are living in your roof, don't block access or disturb them.
What time of year can I see Common Pipistrelles?
You are most likely to see them from spring through to autumn, particularly on mild evenings around sunset. They remain in the UK over winter but become much less active.
Do Common Pipistrelles eat mosquitoes?
Yes. Mosquitoes are among the small flying insects they eat, alongside midges, flies and other insects. They are helpful insect predators, although they should not be expected to eliminate mosquitoes from a garden.
How long do Common Pipistrelles live?
They can live for many years, with recorded individuals reaching around 16 years. Lifespan varies, and such long-lived individuals are not typical of every bat.
