Brown long-eared bat (Plecotus auritus)

Species and habitat description

Our medium-sized bat, with a wingspan of about 30 cm, often weighing less than 10 gr.
The species is named after its longest ears among the domestic bat species. While resting, it hides its ears under its wings. Its hearing is extremely sophisticated. For the ear to function properly, blood needs to be pumped into the ear veins. The Brown long-eared bat has relatively large eyes. Its body is covered with brown, long, fluffy hair. Toes are long.
The species is closely related to old deciduous forests. Typical roosting places are lairs on the trees or crevices under the tree bark. It often leaves the lairs only after darkness. It rarely moves away from its lairs more than three kilometres during feeding, most often hunts only half a kilometre away.
It often feeds on vegetation. Most of its prey consists of moths and dipterans. Not only does it eat flying insects, it also successfully hunts on arthropods that crawl on vegetation.
During the autumn mating period, it is often observed near caves. It spends the dormant period in the lair or smaller caverns.

Major threats

Likemost of the Hungarian forest dwelling bat species, the Brown long-eared bat and its habitats are endangered by the currently applied clear cutting forest management practice in Hungary. Old forests are important habitats also for bats. Logging and in particular the clear cuttings in accordance with the current general domestic practice are endangering the bat populations. Clear cutting of large continuous forests directly reduces their hiding places and the size of their foraging area. For decades, the loss of habitat for bat species associated with closed forests determines the habitat supply of bat species. After clear cutting the forest habitat for bat species typically does not become suitable until several decades later.

Specific conservation action

Improving the spatial structure of homogeneous forests, assisting the mixed species, preserving trees with cavities, creating standing dead wood.