California mammals

Pocketed Free-tailed Bat in California

Nyctinomops femorosaccus

Native to California S3 Vulnerable in California

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

AI-generated image: Pocketed free-tailed bat roosting on tree bark, large joined wrinkled ears and free tail visible. No public-domain photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracyAI-generated image: Pocketed free-tailed bat roosting on a canyon rock face. No public-domain photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracyAI-generated image: Pocketed free-tailed bat close view in a rock crevice. No public-domain photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracy
AI-generated image No public-domain photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracyPocketed free-tailed bat roosting on tree bark, large joined wrinkled ears and free tail visibleAI-generated image No public-domain photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracyPocketed free-tailed bat roosting on a canyon rock faceAI-generated image No public-domain photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracyPocketed free-tailed bat close view in a rock crevice

Pocketed Free-tailed Bat in California, by the numbers

Rare in California 179th most recorded of 233 mammals logged in California

18 occurrence records
10 with iNaturalist photos

Records from 2000–2026.

When to look for the Pocketed Free-tailed Bat in California

Most sightings fall in April.

18 California 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 California records (table)
MonthRecords
January0
February1
March1
April6
May2
June0
July1
August1
September0
October2
November3
December1

Monthly pocketed free-tailed bat occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in California, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in California, with recorded sightings peaking in April.

Occurrence map

Where Pocketed Free-tailed Bat has been recorded in California

18 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

18 California records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Cabrillo National Monument 1
Santa Rosa And San Jacinto National Monument 1

Protected places with the most pocketed free-tailed 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 California

CountyRecords
San Diego County 9
Riverside County 4
San Bernardino County 2
Los Angeles County 1
Other localities 2

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

California has 18 pocketed free-tailed bat records from 2000 to 2026, half of them from San Diego County and most of the rest from Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Ten are research-grade iNaturalist observations and 11 are in GBIF, with a few counted in both.

April has the most, with 6, but records are spread thinly across nine months and the total is too small to show a real season. In the United States the species reaches only a handful of southwestern states, so a short list of records here is expected.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

AI-generated image: Pocketed free-tailed bat roosting on tree bark, large joined wrinkled ears and free tail visible. No public-domain photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracy
Full species profile Pocketed Free-tailed Bat Nyctinomops femorosaccus Size 11.2 cm4.4 in Weight 15 g0.5 oz Lifespan 20 yr View the full profile

More mammals in California 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"