Weight
1/2 - 1 oz
(15 - 28 g)
Body Length
2 3/4 - 3 1/3 in
(6.8 - 8.4 cm)
Lesser Long-nosed Bat
Leptonycteris yerbabuenae
Photo credit: Alan Schmierer
Chiroptera
Yangochiroptera
Phyllostomidae
Call Characteristics
Low frequency caller
The lesser long-nosed bat has brown to gray fur and an unusual split in its tail membrane. Inhabiting desert areas, this species forms large aggregations in cave or mine roosts. Lesser long-nosed bats may migrate over 1,000 miles between their winter and summer ranges! A nectivore, the species is a frequent pollinator of agave and columnar cacti and may opportunistically feed at hummingbird feeders. Mothers give birth to one pup a year. This bat can survive to over 20 years in age in the wild.
There are various sources for bat species range maps including IUCN, NatureServe, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ECOS, and the National Atlas of the United States.
Habitat Range
Information used to populate this page was obtained from the following sources:
NatureServe Explorer
United States Fish and Wildlife Service Environmental Conservation Online System
Bat Conservation International Bat Profiles
National Atlas of the United States. (2011). North American Bat Ranges, 1830-2008. National Atlas of the United States. Available at: http://purl.stanford.edu/pz329xp4277.
Taylor, M. 2019. Bats: an illustrated guide to all species. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Books.