Data Sheet

Pronunciation: core-ee-no-rine-us town-send-ee-eye

Townsend’s big-eared bats are found throughout western North America from British Columbia south to Oaxaca, Mexico, with two endangered subspecies in isolated areas in the Ozark and Central Appalachian regions of the United States. Their most typical habitat is arid western desert scrub and pine forest regions. These agile fliers venture out to forage only after dark, using their keen echolocation to hunt moths and other insects. In the spring and summer, females form maternity colonies in mines, caves, or buildings. Males roost individually.

In winter, these bats hibernate in caves and abandoned mines. They are extremely sensitive to disturbance at their roosting sites and have suffered severe population declines throughout much of the U.S.