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Mexican free-tailed bat flying from day roost in tree hole

Mexican free-tailed bat

Mexican free-tailed bats form some of the largest congregations of mammals on the planet. One cave in Texas is estimated to contain 20 million individuals. These large colonies consume an enormous number of insects every night, many of which are agricultural pests. Mexican free-tailed bats forage for food for longer and go further afield than other bats, travelling at around 80kph (50mph) when flying over open ground.

Scientific name: Tadarida brasiliensis

Rank: Species

Common names:

Brazilian free-tailed bat

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Distribution

Map showing the distribution of the Mexican free-tailed bat taxa

Species range provided by WWF's Wildfinder.

The Mexican free-tailed bat can be found in a number of locations including: North America, South America. Find out more about these places and what else lives there.

Habitats

The following habitats are found across the Mexican free-tailed bat distribution range. Find out more about these environments, what it takes to live there and what else inhabits them.

Behaviours

Discover what these behaviours are and how different plants and animals use them.

Additional data source: Animal Diversity Web

Conservation Status

Least Concern

  1. EX - Extinct
  2. EW
  3. CR - Threatened
  4. EN - Threatened
  5. VU - Threatened
  6. NT
  7. LC - Least concern

Population trend: Stable

Year assessed: 2008

Classified by: IUCN 3.1

About

The Mexican free-tailed bat (Tadarida brasiliensis), also known as the Brazilian free-tailed bat, is a medium-sized bat that is native to the Americas and is widely regarded as one of the most abundant mammals in North America.

However, its proclivity towards roosting in large numbers in relatively few roosts makes it especially vulnerable to human disturbance and habitat destruction, and declining numbers at some roosts such as in the western state of Utah have been documented. In the western coastal state of California, the bat is considered a species of special concern as a result of declining populations. The species' winter migratory habits and destination points are still relatively unknown.

The Mexican free-tailed bat is the official state bat of both Oklahoma and Texas, and its image is the icon for the Bacardi rum brand and for Freetail Brewing Company in San Antonio, TX.

Read more at Wikipedia

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Classification

  1. Life
  2. Animals
  3. Vertebrates
  4. Mammals
  5. Bats
  6. Molossidae
  7. Tadarida
  8. Mexican free-tailed bat

BBC News about Mexican free-tailed bat

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