Virginia Big-Eared Bat

Virginia Big-Eared Bat (N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission)
Biologists know of only one colony of these interesting bats in North Carolina. They stay in the Grandfather Mountain and Beech Mountain areas most of the time, and a small cave near the Blue Ridge Parkway provides them with a winter sanctuary.

Virginia Big-Eared Bat (North Carolina Bat Working Group)
This bat forages in forests, open fields and near cliffs. It is listed as “endangered” under the USFWS Endangered Species Act. Since these bats are highly sensitive to human disturbance, roosting sites are protected.

Virginia Big-Eared Bat (Chesapeake Bay Program)
The Virginia big-eared bat is an endangered, medium-sized bat. It is known for its distinguishing long ears and large glands on its nose.

Virginia Big-Eared Bat (Kentucky Bat Working Group)
Virginia big-eared bats prefer caves in karst regions (areas underlain with limestone bedrock and many caves and sinkholes) dominated by oak-hickory or beech-maple-hemlock forest.