On 4 December 1991, in London, the Agreement on the Conservation of Bats in Europe was concluded. The authentic texts are English, French and German, deposited with the Government of the United Kingdom, which transmits certified copies. It is not the Bonn Convention of 1979.

The preamble recalls the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals, opened for signature at Bonn on 23 June 1979, and the decision of the Conference of the Parties in October 1985 to add European species of Chiroptera (Rhinolophidae and Vespertilionidae) to Appendix II. Article I: "bats" means European populations of those two families occurring in Europe and non-European Range States; "In Europe" means the continent of Europe. Article II: this Agreement is an AGREEMENT within the meaning of paragraph 3 of Article IV of the Convention; it shall not relieve Parties of obligations under any existing treaty; each Party shall designate one or more competent authorities.

Article III: each Party shall prohibit the deliberate capture, keeping or killing of bats except under permit; identify sites important for shelter and protection and, taking into account economic and social considerations, protect them from damage or disturbance; endeavour to identify and protect important feeding areas; give due weight to habitats important for bats; promote conservation and public awareness; assign to an appropriate body advice on bat conservation, particularly bats in buildings; take additional action for populations identified as being subject to threat; promote research programmes, consulting one another; when assessing pesticides for use, consider their potential effects on bats and endeavour to replace timber treatment chemicals highly toxic to bats with safer alternatives.

Article IV: legislative and administrative measures; Parties may adopt stricter measures. Article V: periodic meetings; the Government of the United Kingdom shall call the first meeting not later than three years after entry into force; rules of procedure and financial rules by a two-thirds majority, and a three-quarters majority for decisions under the financial rules; working groups may be established; observers from Range States, the Secretariat of the Convention, and the Council of Europe as Secretariat of the Bern Convention; each Party has one vote, and a Regional Economic Integration Organisation votes with a number of votes equal to its Member States that are Parties and present. Article VI: an up-to-date implementation report, circulated not less than 90 days before the meeting.

Article VII: amendments at any meeting of the Parties, adopted by a two-thirds majority; they enter into force for those which have accepted them 60 days after the deposit of the fifth instrument of acceptance. Article VIII: no general reservations; a specific reservation may be entered with regard to any particular species of bat. Article IX: disputes shall be subject to negotiation. Article X: open to signature by Range States or Regional Economic Integration Organisations, either without reservation in respect of ratification or with reservation followed by ratification; it remains open for signature until the date of entry into force. Article XI: accession after that date.

Article XII: the Agreement shall enter into force on the ninetieth day following the date on which five Range States have become Parties, on 16 January 1994; thereafter, for a signatory or acceding State, on the thirtieth day after deposit of its instrument. Article XIII: denunciation takes effect twelve months after receipt; the Agreement shall remain in force for at least ten years, and thereafter shall terminate on the date on which there cease to be at least five Parties. It is not the Bristol amendments of 1995 (Molossidae) and 2000 (change of title and Annex 1).

Image: Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Whitehall, London; Paul the Archivist, 21 May 2017; CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. Cropped to 16:9.

Source consulted: Agreement on the Conservation of Populations of European Bats. Treaty text: Agreement on the Conservation of Bats in Europe, London, 4 December 1991.