Scientists have come up with a hot new way to save a colony of rare bats.

A population of "Greater Horseshoe" bats in the British West Country may wake up this spring to central heating in their home.

The bats can be found across southern England but it seems the tiny creatures living in the Cheddar Gorge area are so sensitive to the cold it may be affecting their survival.

Their cave normally hangs around 10 degrees Celsius but scientists say numbers of the species have dropped dramatically this century.

Bats huddle together to keep warm

The bats huddle together to share body heat but they are all losing energy to the cold.

Ultimately they will have to eat more to stay warm and will give birth to smaller and less healthy young compared to bats in warmer climes.

Hot idea

Now scientists led by Dr Roger Ransome believe they have come up with a solution.

They want to fit electrical heaters to the cave walls making the temperature a tropical 25 degrees Celsius for the bats when they wake up in the spring.

Dr Ransome says it will benefit the young and old.

Central heating may be solution

"For the mothers it means that they will be able to keep warm and spend most of the energy they get from their food on producing milk.

"For her baby it means they'll grow faster and be able to spend more of the food supply it gets on growing. So it should end up a much larger healthier specimen with a long term future."

Spring heat

The underground heaters will be fitted in time for this spring breeding season.

Scientists hope to double the bat population in Cheddar within a few years.

While it is the first time bat caves have been heated, other bats in Britain have had their homes warmed up.

Fruit bats at Bristol Zoo have to be kept at 20 degrees Celsius year round.

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