BLOOMINGTON — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has decided against designating any caves, mines or forests as critical habitat for the northern long-eared bat, the agency said Monday.

The service designated the bat as threatened last year because it’s been hard hit by white-nose syndrome, a fungal disease that’s deadly to cave-dwelling bats. The service is required under the Endangered Species Act to consider whether certain areas need to be protected to help a species recover, and to designate them as critical habitat unless it determines doing so is “not prudent,” which the service has now done.

In a statement, the service said designating winter hibernation sites as critical habitat would increase the risk of vandalism and disturbances at those caves and mines, while the forests that the bats use in summer don’t need special protection.