The Biden administration declared the northern long-eared bat endangered on Tuesday in a last-ditch effort to save a species driven to the brink of extinction by white-nose syndrome, a fungal disease.

White-nose syndrome is killing off many bat colonies across North America. The same disease is decimating the northern long-eared bat population, which is also on the brink of extinction.

As natural predators of insects, bats are extremely important to agriculture. Researchers estimate their value to farmers in the United States is...