Identification ³

Myotis lucifugus or little brown bats range throughout North America, including Iron County. Females are bigger than males. The fur is glossy and brown, red, golden, or olive green, the underbelly is lighter in color. The wing and membranes are mostly hairless and dark brown to black. The ears are small (11-15.5 mm tall), the tragus is rounded and medium in size (7-9 mm, picture 5.) The hind foot (8-10 mm long) has hair that extends past the toes (picture 3), all limbs have five metapodials. The rostrum is short, the forehead profile slants upward, the braincase is flattened and rounded from a dorsal view. They weigh 5-14 grams, are 60-102 mm long, with a wingspan 222-269 mm. Bat guano is found in copious amounts underneath roosting areas, also dropped in flight so it may be found anywhere. The appearance is tubular or amorphous, with irregular surfaces, and twisted, pointed ends. Scat is 0.2-0.3 cm in diameter and 0.3-1.7 cm in length (picture 2.)
M. lucifugus is commonly mistaken for Myotis yumanensis (Yuma myotis, picture 6.) M. lucifugus is slightly larger with shinier fur, has longer forearms, ears are darker than dorsal fur. M. yumanensis has short, dull dorsal fur, light colored ears, and the forehead slopes more steeply than M. lucifugus. However, characteristics can be intermediate in both species so distinguishing in the field is imprecise. Genetic tests and echolocation samples are more accurate.

Summary ⁴

The little brown bat (sometimes called little brown myotis) (Myotis lucifugus) is a species of the genus Myotis (mouse-eared bats), one of the most common bats of North America. The little brown bat has been a model organism for studying bats.

Sources and Credits

1. (c) SMBishop, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Little_Brown_Myotis.JPG
2. (c) Chanel Tom, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Chanel Tom
3. (c) Chanel Tom, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)
4. Adapted by Chanel Tom from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myotis_lucifugus

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• AMNH Bats of the World
• Animal Diversity Web
• ASM Mammal Diversity Database
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• CalPhotos
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• iNaturalist Mammal Working Group
• Maryland Biodiversity Project
• NatureServe Explorer 2.0
• VertNet
• Wikipedia

Range Map

iNat Map