Oklahoma mammals

Cave Myotis in Oklahoma

Myotis velifer

Native to Oklahoma S3 Vulnerable in Oklahoma

Not listed as nonindigenous in Oklahoma by USGS NAS; native to its Oklahoma range.

IUCN Red List status

  1. LC
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Cluster of cave myotis bats roosting on a cave ceiling in TexasGroup of cave myotis bats clustered together in a rock creviceCave myotis roosting alone on a cave wallCave myotis clinging to a mineral-streaked cave wallCave myotis roosting in a narrow crevice under a bridge
Photo: USGS · Public domainCluster of cave myotis bats roosting on a cave ceiling in TexasPhoto: Ansil B.R. · CC-BYGroup of cave myotis bats clustered together in a rock crevicePhoto: Ansil B.R. · CC-BYCave myotis roosting alone on a cave wallPhoto: Juan Cruzado Cortés · CC-BYCave myotis clinging to a mineral-streaked cave wallPhoto: Natasha Haggard · CC-BYCave myotis roosting in a narrow crevice under a bridge

Cave Myotis in Oklahoma, by the numbers

Occasional in Oklahoma 57th most recorded of 120 mammals logged in Oklahoma

914 occurrence records
50 with iNaturalist photos
May 1, 2026 Last seen in Oklahoma

Records from 2000–2026.

914 total records count every Oklahoma occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 300; the monthly chart covers the 911 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Cave Myotis in Oklahoma

Most sightings fall in February.

911 Oklahoma occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly Oklahoma records (table)
MonthRecords
January85
February331
March141
April114
May26
June3
July13
August12
September50
October41
November25
December70

Monthly cave myotis occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in Oklahoma, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in Oklahoma, with recorded sightings peaking in February.

Occurrence map

Where Cave Myotis has been recorded in Oklahoma

300 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

300 Oklahoma records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
CLO Lands 15
Alabaster Caverns State Park 12
Selman Cave System 2
Canton Wildlife Management Area & Waterfowl Refuge Portion 1
Wichita Mountains Wilderness North Mountain Unit 1

Protected places with the most cave myotis sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in Oklahoma

CountyRecords
Harmon County 552
Woodward County 125
Major County 78
Woods County 63
Caddo County 22
Greer County 16
Adair County 12
Washita County 10
Custer County 9
Harper County 8
Beckham County 3
Garfield County 3
11 other counties 13

The complete county distribution, spread across 23 Oklahoma counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Cave myotis show one of the starkest source imbalances in this Oklahoma dataset: 910 GBIF records against just 50 from iNaturalist, meaning cave and hibernaculum surveys, not casual sightings, document nearly everything known about this colonial bat here. NatureServe rates the state population S3, vulnerable, for a species whose entire population concentrates in a relatively small number of roost caves, making it especially sensitive to disturbance at any single site.

September (15) and March (12) stand out as the year’s two peaks, together more than half the monthly-tallied total, likely tracking survey visits timed to fall staging and spring emergence from winter roosts, with June and November showing essentially no records.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Cluster of cave myotis bats roosting on a cave ceiling in Texas
Full species profile Cave Myotis Myotis velifer Size 5–6 cm2–2.4 in Weight 12–15 g0.4–0.5 oz Lifespan 10 yr View the full profile

More mammals in Oklahoma in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

  • GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
  • iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
  • NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
  • IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
  • USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
  • Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
  • USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
  • USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"