JUNE 18 – AUGUST 31, 2026
DID YOU KNOW THERE ARE OVER 50 BAT HOUSES THROUGHOUT THE CAYMAN ISLANDS?
The National Trust for the Cayman Islands has been installing bat houses around the Cayman Islands since 1994 and to date there are over 50 publicly accessible bat houses throughout Grand and Little Cayman. Bat houses offer the perfect place for bats to roost and nest where there aren’t many caves around, plus they offer the perfect alternative to the pesky buildings which have appeared in their habitat. Keeping bats healthy and thriving also means important ecosystem services like seed dispersal and insect control are supported.
That’s why the Department of Environment has teamed up with the National Trust to present Bat Count Cayman – a citizen science project that monitors our bat populations by counting the number of bats leaving each bat house at sunset. It only takes 30 minutes to conduct a survey and collecting this data helps our scientists better protect this keystone species in the Cayman Islands.
Check out where all the bat houses are located on this Google Map.
READY TO BECOME A CITIZEN SCIENTIST?
Register and become a citizen scientist today by emailing TRU.DOE@gov.ky with the subject line “Bat Count Cayman”. Registering allows us to contact you if there are any questions or if you win a prize!
DOWNLOAD THE EPICOLLECT5 APP TO SUBMIT YOUR BAT COUNT SURVEY DATA
This year, Bat Count Cayman is offering our citizen scientists some awesome rewards! By registering and submitting 3 bat counts on the Epicollect5 app, you’ll be entered to win a gift card from one of our awesome sponsors!
Can’t use an app? No problem! You can submit your data by email. Just make sure you track the date, bat house number, time of start and end of counting (30 minutes minimum) and of course, the number of bats! Download the Bat Count Guide for more info.
SO LET’S GET COUNTING!
Keep scrolling to the info cards below to learn more about how to conduct your bat count and be sure to email tru.doe@gov.ky if you want to win a prize!
LEARN MORE ABOUT BATS!
Visit the DoE bat page to learn more about the nine species of bats native to the Cayman Islands then check out the National Trust for the Cayman Islands Bat Conservation page and awesome video below “Bats of the Cayman Islands” featuring DoE Terrestrial Research Officer, Simone Williams and Dr. Ben Stading from St. Matthews University 
