One of the UK's rarest mammals, the grey long-eared bat (Plecotus austriacus) is in danger of disappearing from the country

A four-year study by scientists from the University of Bristol estimated there were 1,000 of the bats left - all confined to southern England. The Bat Conservation Trust has published the findings in a new conservation management plan. Dr Orly Razgour, who led the research, said that very little was known about the species before she started her study. "We thought there might be more colonies, that it might be less rare than we suspected," she told BBC News. "But after studying the species for four years, we realised that they are very rare. We also know that [it has] declined dramatically in the last century".

Source: BBC News, 5 August 2013
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-23519010