What do you think of when you think about bats? More than likely, what comes to mind are vampire bats and spooky places – certainly not warm, fuzzy thoughts.

Meet the Townsend’s big-eared bat, undoubtedly the cutest bat you have ever seen. Yes, I said cute.

Townsend’s big-eared bats (Corynorhinus townsendii) are medium-sized bats with long, flexible ears. Their fur is pale gray or brown above, and buff-colored on the underside. They have two large, glandular lumps on either side of the nose.

Their total body length is about 4 inches (the tail making up about half of that length), and they have wingspan of about 12 inches. They have enormous ears, reaching a length of about 1.3 inches.

When the ears are laid back, they typically extend to the middle of the body. When roosting or hibernating, they curl up their long ears, so they look like rams’ horns. When they fly, they can extend and contract their ears. When flying with their ears extended, they point their ears forward, almost parallel to their bodies.

Townsend’s big-eared bats eat small moths, flies, lacewings, dung beetles, wasps and other small insects. They typically forage among the edge of vegetation. Their predators can include snakes, owls, hawks, cats and raccoons.

Townsend’s big-eared bats can be found throughout the western United States and British Columbia, and into central Mexico. They use a variety of habitats, almost always near caves or abandoned mine tunnels. They can be found in pine forests and desert scrub habitats.

However, their numbers have been in decline. There has been a 40 percent to 60 percent decline in their numbers over the last 30 years. For that reason, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife in 2013 named it a candidate for protection as an endangered species under California’s Endangered Species Act.

Several reasons have been attributed to their decline including habitat destruction and disturbance of roost sites. Solar energy plants have also been attributed to causing deaths.

Even if you do not agree with me that the Townsend’s big-eared bat is cute, there is another reason to care about the decline of this wonderful creature. They, along with other bats, provide a natural pest-control service for farmers. The bats eat millions of insects that would otherwise attack the farmers’ crops. The presence of bats allows farmers to reduce or even eliminate the need for pesticides.

Unfortunately, Townsend’s big-eared bats are particularly sensitive to human disturbance. They will completely abandon a cave or other structure they have been using for roosting once there has been a human intrusion. For that reason, it is important for us to support efforts to identify caves and other structures on public lands that are home to these bats and work to restrict human access to these areas.

If we do not take these steps now, we may forever lose a valuable – and cute – part of our ecosystem.

Linda Castro is a nature enthusiast and animal lover.  She is the Desert Field Organizer for the California Wilderness Coalition and serves on the board of the SCV-based Community Hiking Club.  Her commentaries relate to California’s deserts.