Southeastern Bat
- Scientific Name: Myotis austroriparius
- Weight: 5-8 grams
- Wingspan: 24-27centimeters
- Distribution: Southeastern United States from southern Illinois and Indiana to northeastern Texas and northern Florida.
- Ecology and Behavior: Caves are favorite roosting sites, although buildings and other shelters are sometimes used. Maternity colonies comprised of thousands of individuals inhabit caves. Throughout much of the South, these bats reside in buildings and hollow trees, in the northern part of their range they roost primarily in caves. Predators include opossums, snakes, and owls, but by destruction of roosting sites and killing of these bats humans probably are the major threat to the species. Southeastern bats are usually associated with bodies of water, over which they feed. They forage low, close to the water's surface.
- Food Habits: Probably a variety of insects, but the diet of the species has not been studied.
- Reproduction: Mating time is unknown, but about 90% of pregnant females bear twins in late April to mid- May. The production of twins is unique to species of bats in the genus Myotis in the United States; all other Myotis usually produce one young. Clusters of young often are separate from females during the day. Young can fly when 5 or 6 weeks old.
- Status of Populations: Once common, populations of the southeastern bat have decreased and it has been proposed for listing as threatened or endangered.
- Range:
The presence of species in particular counties is based on both summer and winter occurrence records compiled by the TNBWG, an unshaded county does not represent the absence of a particular species from that county, only the lack of an occurrence record. These maps are intended for educational and general information purposes only and are not intended for use in consultation with US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) or any other state or federal agencies. Project proponents should contact USFWS and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency for the most up to date ranges for bat species in Tennessee.
Range Map Data Sources
National bat ranges - Layer downloaded from nationalatlas.gov. The data were compiled by Bat Conservation International using data from state natural heritage programs, published literature, unpublished reports, museum collections, and personal communications from university, Federal, State, and local biologists.
TN county occurrence data - TWRA Scientific Collection Permit data compiled from 2000-2013, TWRA Wildlife Diversity database, published literature [Graves and Harvey 1974. (Journal of the Tennessee Academy of Sciences 49:106-109)], personal communications from university, Federal, State, local biologists, and TNBWG members.