Mammals
Little Brown Bat
Myotis lucifugus · also called little brown bats, little brown myotis
Emerging at dusk from a hollow tree, a little brown bat begins a night of hunting that could see it catch several hundred insects before dawn, a level of pest control that once made this small, once-abundant species one of the most valuable mammals in North American forests.
Overview
The little brown bat, Myotis lucifugus, is a small, insect-eating mammal native to forest and wetland habitat across a broad range of Canada and the United States. Its remarkable echolocation-based hunting ability, surprisingly long lifespan for its size, and catastrophic decline from white-nose syndrome make it one of the more urgent conservation stories among North American mammals.
A once-common bat now fighting for survival
Few mammals have seen a reversal of fortune as steep as the little brown bat, a species that went from being one of the most abundant bats in North America to Endangered across much of its range within just a couple of decades.
Status
Endangered across significant portions of its range, having suffered catastrophic declines from white-nose syndrome since the disease’s emergence, despite once being one of the most common bat species on the continent.
Little Brown Bat: common questions
Why has the little brown bat population declined so dramatically?
This species has suffered catastrophic population declines across much of eastern North America due to white-nose syndrome, a fungal disease that disrupts hibernation and has killed millions of bats since it was first detected, turning what was once one of the most common bat species on the continent into an Endangered one across significant parts of its range.
How many insects can a little brown bat eat?
This species can catch several hundred small flying insects in a single hour of foraging, making it an important natural control on many nuisance and agricultural pest insect populations wherever healthy colonies remain.
How does the little brown bat find insects in the dark?
This species navigates and hunts in complete darkness using echolocation, emitting high-frequency calls and interpreting the returning echoes to detect and precisely track flying insects, a sensory ability that lets it hunt effectively without relying on vision.
How long can a little brown bat live?
This species can live for a surprisingly long time relative to its small body size, with some wild individuals documented living well over three decades, an unusually long lifespan among small mammals of similar size.