Grey Long-eared Bat
CR

Grey Long-eared Bat

Plecotus austriacus

UnknownLCEULCEU

Photo: Wikimedia Commons (CC) via https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grey_long-eared_bat

Overview

The grey long-eared bat is a fairly large European bat. It has distinctive ears, long and with a distinctive fold. It hunts above woodland, often by day, and mostly for moths. In captivity, it has also been recorded to eat small lizards. It is extremely similar to the more common brown long-eared bat, and was only distinguished in the 1960s, but has a paler belly.

The Grey Long-eared Bat faces severe population declines primarily due to habitat loss from agricultural intensification and urban development, which eliminates crucial foraging areas and roosting sites. Climate change is altering insect prey availability and distribution patterns, while disturbance to roost sites in buildings and caves further threatens remaining populations.

Threat summary

Habitat

Its main foraging habitats are lowland meadows and marshes.

Other threatened species in Vespertilionidae

Pond BatVU

Pond Bat

Myotis dasycneme

Unknown
Geoffroy's BatVU

Geoffroy's Bat

Myotis emarginatus

Unknown
Serotine BatVU

Serotine Bat

Eptesicus serotinus

Unknown
Greater Mouse-eared BatEN

Greater Mouse-eared Bat

Myotis myotis

Unknown

Frequently asked questions

Why is Grey Long-eared Bat classified as Critically Endangered?
Grey Long-eared Bat is classified as Critically Endangered — facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild — because population sizes are very small, declining sharply, or restricted to a tiny range. The Grey Long-eared Bat faces severe population declines primarily due to habitat loss from agricultural intensification and urban development, which eliminates crucial foraging areas and roosting sites. Climate change is altering insect prey availability and distribution patterns, while disturbance to roost sites in buildings and caves further threatens remaining populations.
Where does Grey Long-eared Bat live?
Grey Long-eared Bat occurs in across multiple regions. Country-level distribution data is sourced from the IUCN Red List and cross-referenced with GBIF occurrences.
What are the main threats to Grey Long-eared Bat?
The main threats to Grey Long-eared Bat are ai-1, ai-2, ai-3, and ai-4. The full IUCN-classified threat record for this species is detailed on the species page.

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