It can catch hundreds of insects during a night of feeding.
COMPLETE SPECIES PROFILE
Little brown bat
Myotis lucifugus
One species, many connections.
Also known as: little brown myotis, little brown bat
WHY IT MATTERS
One species, many connections.
By consuming insects, bats connect forests, wetlands, agriculture, nighttime food webs, and cave ecosystems.
- Scientific name
- Myotis lucifugus
- Animal group
- Vertebrate · Mammalia
- Environment
- Air · Land
PUBLIC-DOMAIN VISUAL RECORDS
Two additional perspectives
Together with the primary image, these records show behavior and habitat without covering the photographs with labels.
INTERACTIVE TAXONOMY
Interactive classification
Select any rank to understand what the classification means.
DID YOU KNOW?
Curiosities that reveal how it lives
Echolocation calls are mostly above the range of human hearing.
It may lower body temperature dramatically during hibernation.
Mothers often gather in maternity colonies to raise pups.
Where it lives
Forests, wetlands, buildings, caves, and mines across much of North America.
How it lives
Flying insects captured at night using echolocation.
Key adaptations
Powered flight, echolocation, flexible wings, torpor, and winter hibernation.
Its connections
By consuming insects, bats connect forests, wetlands, agriculture, nighttime food webs, and cave ecosystems.
Pressures and protection
White-nose syndrome, roost disturbance, habitat loss, wind turbines, and pesticide exposure.