USFWS Proposes To List Northern Long-Eared Bat As Endangered

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ("USFWS") recently proposed to change the listing of the northern long-eared bat under the Endangered Species Act from threatened to endangered. The USFWS determined that the northern long-eared bat now meets the definition of an endangered species, meaning that it is currently in danger of extinction. In the United States, the species occupies thirty-seven states ranging from Maine west to Montana, south to eastern Kansas, eastern Oklahoma, Arkansas, and east to South Carolina. According to the USFWS, the bat population is threatened due to the impact of white-nose syndrome, forest management activities, wind energy development, and habitat modification.