Long-Eared Bat Gets Federal Protection

The federal government said Wednesday that it is listing the northern long-eared bat as threatened, giving new protections to a species that has been nearly wiped out in some areas by the spread of a fungal disease. was first discovered among bats in a cave near Albany, N.Y., in 2006, and has since killed millions of bats in the Northeast, South and Midwest. It spreads while they congregate on the wet walls of caves or mines, interrupting their hibernation and causing them to starve or dehydrate. Bats play a key role in insect control. Tony Sullins, Midwestern chief of the endangered species program for the United States , said protections are limited because the main threat is from a disease, rather than from human-induced changes in the environment. Protective measures improve the bats’ breeding opportunities by restricting some logging and tree removal from areas where they spend warmer months. The meausres will be in effect in June and July, when newborn bats live in nests before learning to fly. An oil drillers’ group said the decision stifles industry while providing questionable protections to the bats.

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