Lost River - Karst Information Portal

There are currently 47 recognized species of
bats found in the United States. Indiana
has at least 12 of them. Of these, four species
are rarely, if ever, encountered in caves here.
These are the silver-haired bat (Lasionycteris
noctivagans), eastern red bat (Lasiurus
borealis), hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus), and
evening bat (Nycticeius humeralis). These are
all tree-roosting species, except the evening
bat, which sometimes also roosts in buildings
and other man-made structures. Tree bats are
often very colorful (except the plain brown
evening bat), but their solitary, tree-roosting
behavior means that most cavers will never see
one except in books. That still leaves eight bats
that might be seen in Indiana caves, and some
of them look very much alike. Four of these are
reasonably distinct and they can be identified
Lasionycteris noctivagans (silver haired bat),
perched on a `cave wall. © Merlin D. Tuttle, Bat
Conservation International.
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Bats in Indiana Caves
By Jim “Crash” Kennedy, NSS 26791 RL, FE
Cave Resources Specialist, Bat Conservation International
by passing cavers without too much difficulty.
The most obvious of these is the eastern
pipistrelle (Pipistrellus subflavus). One of the
smallest bats in the East, it is easily recognized
by its light-colored fur and ears, and pinkish
forearms. All other bats of this size are darker,
with dark ears and forearms. “Pips” are solitary
roosters, and may be seen in caves during
summer and winter. While never numerous in
a single cave, they are found in more caves than
any other bat species. During hibernation, they
seek out cool, stable temperature zones in the
caves. Cavers often encounter these diminutive
bats so covered with condensing water droplets
that they appear white. They are some of the
first bats to enter hibernation in the fall, and
the last to leave in the spring.
Another fairly easy bat to identify is the
Lasiurus borealis (red bat), sleeping male in green
foliage. © Merlin D. Tuttle, Bat Conservation
International.