The gray bat (Myotis grisescens) is a species of microbat endemic to North America. It once flourished in caves all over the southeastern United States, but due to human disturbance, gray bat populations declined severely during the early and mid portion of the 20th century. Today, only fifteen caves support 95% of hibernating gray bats. M. grisescens has been listed as federally endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service since 1976,
Biology and behavior
Foraging
Gray bats forage over water, including streams and reservoirs, where they consume night-flying insects most of which have aquatic larval stages,
After 37 years without a single documented gray bat within the state boundaries of Mississippi, on September 20, 2004, a male gray bat was discovered in Tishomingo County in northeastern Mississippi, 42 km south of the last known location of M. grisescens before their decline and disappearance within the state of Mississippi. (Before this 2004 discovery, the only known gray bats lived at a site known as Chalk Mine, located in the northeastern portion of the county. Gray bats had last been documented at Chalk Mine in 1967.) Extensive human disturbance, including the presence of trash, smoke, and graffiti, is believed to have affected the use of the Chalk Mine by bats. While the discovery of this bat is deemed as a positive sign by conservationists, it is possible that the bat was not from a Mississippi M. grisescens population. The closest known gray bat maternal colony, located at Blowing Springs Cave, Alabama, is northeast of where the 2004 gray bat was found, but because gray bats are known to forage over extensive areas, it is possible that this bat belonged to the Blowing Springs Cave colony.
See also
- Bats of the United States