More than 50 unique species of bats live in national parks! And they are indeed unique! Some eat insects, others pollinate plants or spread seeds of the fruit they eat. Many are small, weighing less than 10 grams. Others are huge, like the Pacific Flying Fox weighing in at over 2 pounds!
On this page, explore bat species in parks in three ways:
On this page, explore bat species in parks in three ways:
- Meet the bats by clicking through a photo gallery of the 50+ species found in parks.
- Select a park and see a species list of bats found in that park.
- See thefull species list of bats found in parks.
Meet the Bats!
Select a Park:
Select a Species Category (optional):
Search results will be displayed here.
Visit NPSpecies for more comprehensive information and advanced search capability. Have a suggestion or comment on this list? Let us know.
Scientific Name | Common Name | # Parks | |
1 | Eptesicus fuscus | Big brown bat | 178 |
2 | Lasiurus cinereus | Hoary bat | 127 |
3 | Myotis lucifugus | Little brown myotis | 123 |
4 | Lasionycteris noctivagans | Silver-haired bat | 108 |
5 | Lasiurus borealis | Eastern red bat | 90 |
6 | Tadarida brasiliensis | Mexican free-tailed bat | 75 |
7 | Myotis californicus | California myotis | 74 |
8 | Corynorhinus townsendii | Townsend's big-eared bat | 73 |
9 | Myotis volans | Long-legged myotis | 69 |
10 | Perimyotis subflavus | Tricolored bat | 69 |
11 | Myotis ciliolabrum | Western small-footed myotis | 67 |
12 | Myotis yumanensis | Yuma myotis | 66 |
13 | Myotis thysanodes | Fringed myotis | 65 |
14 | Antrozous pallidus | Pallid bat | 61 |
15 | Myotis evotis | Western long-eared myotis | 56 |
16 | Myotis septentrionalis | Northern long-eared myotis | 56 |
17 | Parastrellus hesperus | Canyon bat | 53 |
18 | Nycticeius humeralis | Evening bat | 37 |
19 | Nyctinomops macrotis | Big free-tailed bat | 31 |
20 | Euderma maculatum | Spotted bat | 30 |
21 | Lasiurus blossevillii | Western red bat | 21 |
22 | Myotis leibii | Eastern small-footed myotis | 16 |
23 | Eumops perotis | Western mastiff bat | 14 |
24 | Idionycteris phyllotis | Allen's big-eared bat | 13 |
25 | Myotis grisescens | Gray myotis | 13 |
26 | Myotis velifer | Cave myotis | 12 |
27 | Lasiurus seminolus | Seminole bat | 11 |
28 | Myotis sodalis | Indiana myotis | 11 |
29 | Corynorhinus rafinesquii | Rafinesque's big-eared bat | 10 |
30 | Myotis auriculus | Southwestern myotis | 9 |
31 | Nyctinomops femorosaccus | Pocketed free-tailed bat | 8 |
32 | Choeronycteris mexicana | Mexican long-tongued bat | 6 |
33 | Lasiurus cinereus semotus | Hawaiian hoary bat | 6 |
34 | Lasiurus intermedius | Northern yellow bat | 6 |
35 | Myotis austroriparius | Southeastern myotis | 6 |
36 | Lasiurus xanthinus | Western yellow bat | 5 |
37 | Macrotus californicus | California leaf-nosed bat | 5 |
38 | Leptonycteris yerbabuenae | Lesser long-nosed bat | 4 |
39 | Mormoops megalophylla | Ghost-face bat | 2 |
40 | Artibeus jamaicensis | Jamaican fruit-eating bat | 1 |
41 | Brachyphylla cavernarum | Antillean fruit-eating bat | 1 |
42 | Corynorhinus townsendii ingens | Ozark big-eared bat | 1 |
43 | Corynorhinus townsendii virginianus | Virginia big-eared bat | 1 |
44 | Diphylla ecaudata | Hairy-legged vampire bat | 1 |
45 | Eumops floridanus | Florida bonneted bat | 1 |
46 | Eumops underwoodi | Underwood's mastiff bat | 1 |
47 | Molossus molossus | Pallas's mastiff bat | 1 |
48 | Myotis occultus | Arizona myotis | 1 |
49 | Noctilio leporinus | Greater bulldog bat | 1 |
50 | Stenoderma rufum | Red fig-eating bat | 1 |
51 | Leptonycteris nivalis | Mexican long-nosed bat | 1 |
52 | Pteropus samoensis | Samoan flying fox | 1 |
53 | Pteropus tonganus | Pacific flying fox | 1 |
These species of bats used to live in War in the Pacific National Historic Park in Guam, but they have been extirpated (locally extinct):
Pteropus tokudae | Guam flying fox |
Pteropus mariannus | Marianus flying fox |
Emballonura semicaudata | Polynesian sheath-tailed bat |
According to range maps of some bats, it's possible for these species to be in national parks, but they haven't been recorded:
Myotis keenii | Keen's myotis |
Mormoops blainvillii | Antillean ghost-faced bat |
Pteronotus parnellii | Common mustached bat |
Pteronotus quadridens | Sooty mustached bat |
Erophylla bombifrons | Brown flower bat |
Natalus mexicanus | Mexican greater funnel-eared bat |
Lasiurus ega | Southern yellow bat |
Lasiurus minor | Little red bat |
For a detailed report on species of bats in national parks, read A macroecological perspective on strategic bat conservation in the US National Park Service by lead author and NPS Ecologist Tom Rodhouse.
Last updated: November 14, 2024