The Queen’s favourite home Balmoral Castle is full of bats and she joins the servants chasing them for hours with nets
THE Queen will soon be currently residing at her favourite holiday home, Balmoral Castle, and may take part in a rather unusual sport during the stay.
The ballroom of the large Aberdeenshire estate is said to be home to a colony of pipistrelle bats that nest in the rafters – and Her Majesty has even helped to catch them with nets.
While the men in her party may be hunting out on the moors, the Queen has been known to stay indoors and even chase the bats round the vast room with butterfly nets.
Upon careful capture, she releases them back into the great outdoors, but keeps the window open in case they return and she can repeat the activity.
Speaking to Fabulous Digital, royal editor Adam Helliker said: “When I checked last summer there were bats still there.
“They can’t get rid of them. Lots of the servants want to get rid of them as they defecate all over the place.
“They are a protected species so they can’t move them. You can’t move bats when it’s their habitat.”
Adam said that he gathers the bats have been there for the past three decades and the Queen has played an active role in interacting with them.
He said: “She used to do the net wielding but she doesn’t do it now. Now I’m told the Queen shouts encouragement but observes the proceedings.
“It’s more of a show put on for her by staff. That’s just one of the things they do at Balmoral to stop them getting bored stiff.
“Although the footsmen would love it if they weren’t there, I think you could say after horses and corgis, bats are her much lesser-known third favourite.”
Fabulous Digital contacted Buckingham Palace who declined to comment.
The common pipistrelle bat is a protected species under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and they can be so small they fit in a matchbox.
They can easily eat 3,000 insects a night and they usually emerge at dusk to feed for a few hours before returning to their roosts.
THE QUEEN'S SUMMER RETREAT AT BALMORAL
Balmoral Castle has been a Royal residence since 1852.
The estate and its original castle were purchased privately by Prince Albert, consort to Queen Victoria, and to this day remain the private property of the Royal Family.
The castle is classified by Historic Scotland as a category A listed building, and costs around £3 million annually to run.
Every summer, the Monarch returns to the Balmoral estate with her husband Prince Philip.
Throughout the summer, much of the royal family – including Charles, Camilla, William, and Kate – will join her and Prince Philip for their annual “summer break.”
The Royal residence has often been described as “the most beautiful place on Earth” and is often referred to as the Queen’s favourite home.
The Queen is often seen riding horses or driving her beloved Range Rover over the estate’s rugged terrain.
The castle gardens were first opened to the public in 1931.
They now open daily between April and the end of July, after which Queen Elizabeth arrives for her annual stay.
Every year The Queen travels to Scotland at the beginning of July for a week of engagements before heading to her Scottish estate until October.
The estate and its original castle were purchased privately by Prince Albert, consort to Queen Victoria, and to this day remain the private property of the Royal Family.
Throughout the summer, much of the royal family – including Charles, Camilla, William, and Kate – will join her and Prince Philip for their annual “summer break.”
The Royal residence has often been described as “the most beautiful place on Earth” and is often referred to as the Queen’s favourite home.
Adam said that apart from being entertained by the ballroom bats, the Queen keeps herself occupied at Balmoral with a number of activities.
He explained: “She does a lot of walking and she still rides. There’s that wonderful photo of her looking out over Balmoral.
“She doesn’t go shooting but she goes on the shooting parties and meets them for lunch.
“There is a particular breed of Balmoral pony and they are used for collecting the carcases of stags after hunting.
“She also takes a great interest in the breeding of those ponies.”
MORE ON THE ROYAL FAMILY
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