Kentucky mammals

Evening Bat in Kentucky

Nycticeius humeralis

Native to Kentucky S4 Apparently Secure in Kentucky

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

Evening bat resting, brown fur and dark ears and wings visible, not restrainedEvening batEvening Bat
Photo: Lisa Winnett-Pequeno · CC BY 4.0Evening bat resting, brown fur and dark ears and wings visible, not restrainedPhoto: Enwebb · CC BY-SA 4.0Evening batPhoto: NPS Photo · Public domainEvening Bat

Evening Bat in Kentucky, by the numbers

Rare in Kentucky 61st most recorded of 77 mammals logged in Kentucky

11 occurrence records
10 with iNaturalist photos

Records from 2000–2026.

When to look for the Evening Bat in Kentucky

Most sightings fall in August.

11 Kentucky occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence. Based on a small number of dated records; the seasonal pattern may not be representative.

Monthly Kentucky records (table)
MonthRecords
January0
February0
March0
April2
May0
June0
July1
August4
September1
October0
November3
December0

Monthly evening bat occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in Kentucky, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Sparse observation record in Kentucky; presence confirmed but timing of activity not well documented.

Occurrence map

Where Evening Bat has been recorded in Kentucky

11 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

11 Kentucky records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Land Between the Lakes Other 4
Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area 1
Mammoth Cave National Park 1

Protected places with the most evening bat 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 Kentucky

CountyRecords
Trigg County 6
Jefferson County 3
Pike County 1
Edmonson County 1

The complete county distribution, spread across 4 Kentucky counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Evening bat records in Kentucky cluster around Mammoth Cave National Park and Pennyrile Forest’s karst country, though unlike many of the state’s cave bats, this species roosts mainly in tree cavities and buildings rather than caves themselves.

Reports concentrate in August, with all 7 records coming from GBIF survey data rather than photographs; a small, fast-flying bat active only after dark is documented almost entirely through acoustic and capture surveys. NatureServe ranks the species S4, Apparently Secure, in Kentucky despite the thin record.

Occurrence data from GBIF.

Evening bat resting, brown fur and dark ears and wings visible, not restrained
Full species profile Evening Bat Nycticeius humeralis Size 5 cm2 in Weight 7–15 g0.2–0.5 oz Lifespan Up to 6 yr View the full profile

More mammals in Kentucky 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"