Ozark Big-eared Bat
Enormous ears make this rare bat visually unmistakable, but entering its cave to confirm a sighting can threaten the very colony being sought.
Artwork inspired by Woody Crumbo
The subspecies uses cool caves and mines for hibernation and protected sites for maternity colonies. It gleans moths from vegetation and navigates cluttered forest, depending on both undisturbed underground roosts and healthy feeding habitat.
Observe emergence only through authorized programs and decontaminate gear to prevent spreading white-nose syndrome. Let observation replace interference: do not feed, bait, flush, pick, peel, or reposition Ozark Big-eared Bat. Nocturnal year-round; caves are especially sensitive in winter and maternity season.
- Best clue
- Medium bat with ears nearly as long as its body and paired lumps above the nose
- Habitat
- Ozark caves, mines, and surrounding mature forest
- Regional status
- Federally endangered Oklahoma–Arkansas bat
Quick guide
- Look
- Extraordinarily long ears
- Confirm
- Paired nasal lumps
Separate Ozark Big-eared Bat from look-alikes
- First clue
- Read medium bat with ears nearly as long as its body and paired lumps above when identifying Ozark Big-eared Bat.
- Confirm with sign
- Compare slow maneuverable flight together with paired nasal lumps before accepting the identification.
- Where it belongs
- Ozark caves, mines, and surrounding mature forest; nocturnal year-round.
- Observe without pursuit
- Use distance to observe protect the subject: Let observation replace interference: do not feed, bait, flush, pick, peel, or reposition Ozark Big-eared Bat.
Good to know
Protecting the bat requires both undisturbed caves and healthy forest feeding habitat; securing a roost entrance alone cannot preserve the full life cycle.
Notice these
- Extraordinarily long ears
- Paired nasal lumps
- Slow maneuverable flight
- Cave-roost sensitivity