{"id":13654,"date":"2016-03-24T09:00:23","date_gmt":"2016-03-24T08:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ferrovial.com\/blog\/en\/?p=13654"},"modified":"2025-12-12T00:42:16","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T23:42:16","slug":"innovation-in-construction-the-protection-of-bats-when-building-motorways","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ferrovial.com\/blog\/en\/2016\/03\/innovation-in-construction-the-protection-of-bats-when-building-motorways\/","title":{"rendered":"Innovation in construction: the protection of bats when building motorways"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bats (Chiroptera)<\/strong>, historically abundant in the territories of the old Kingdom of Aragon, bear very close links to the myths and symbols of the Levantine region, and are present in many of the coats of arms, shields and symbols of the area\u2019s villages, associations and clubs, from the coat of arms of the city of Valencia, to the logo of Alcoy\u00b4s football club, the Alcoyano<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0(though the club is more famous for its unflappable fighting spirit, as the saying in Spanish goes!).<\/p>\n

These small mammals play a very important role in controlling pests and insect numbers, as well as in pollination, seed dispersal and soil fertilisation, and as such constitute an important natural capital<\/strong><\/a> for the region.\u00a0It is part of innovation in construction, protecting bats during construction work for example when building motorways.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, bat numbers are falling to the point where certain species are almost extinct in the Valencian region, mainly through loss of habitat and mostly as a result of human activity. In some cases, bat habitats have become degraded due to the barrier effect of large linear works, such as roads.<\/p>\n

[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”null” suffix=”null”]Awareness regarding animal and plant protection within the construction sector has grown enormously[\/inlinetweet], and it is a factor which is taken into account when designing and building roads. Great care is taken to avoid fragmentation of wildlife habitats, with the provision of species-specific crossings or bridges enabling wild animals to cross roads safely.<\/p>\n

But when the animals to be protected are birds and other flying species, such as bats, solutions are more difficult to find. Obviously, these animals can simply fly over the road to reach the other side. The problem arises when they fly low and are at risk of being run over. Up until now, practically no wildlife corridors were built for flying animals.<\/p>\n

The Barranco de la Batalla stretch of the A-7 motorway<\/strong><\/a> in Alcoy (Alicante) includes an innovative wildlife corridor designed and built specifically for protecting the bat species<\/strong> living in the Juliana Cave<\/strong><\/a> lying just below the motorway, some of which are in danger of extinction<\/strong>. This cave is one of the main bat shelters in the province of Alicante, and is home to six species of bats, of which two are threatened and two are in danger of extinction. The Juliana Cave (or Cova Juliana<\/em> as it is known in Valencian in the area) has been proposed as a Site of Community Importance (SCI)<\/strong> and has been included in the Natura 2000 network<\/strong><\/a>.
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