South Dakota mammals

Western Little Brown Myotis in South Dakota

Myotis lucifugus

Native to South Dakota S3 Vulnerable in South Dakota

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

IUCN Red List status

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

EN – Endangered

Very high risk of extinction in the wild.

Little brown myotis roosting alertly on a wooden beamLittle brown myotis roosting in the corner of an attic beamLittle brown myotis roosting on painted wood sidingLittle brown myotis resting among blue spruce branches
Photo: Steph Brulot-Sawchyn · CC0Little brown myotis roosting alertly on a wooden beamPhoto: LeeAnn Latremouille · CC BY 4.0Little brown myotis roosting in the corner of an attic beamPhoto: Tom Romeo · CC BY 4.0Little brown myotis roosting on painted wood sidingPhoto: Patrick Jackson · CC BY 4.0Little brown myotis resting among blue spruce branches

Western Little Brown Myotis in South Dakota, by the numbers

Rare in South Dakota 80th most recorded of 100 mammals logged in South Dakota

1 occurrence records
1 with iNaturalist photos
Dec 26, 2025 Last seen in South Dakota

Records from 2000–2026.

When to look for the Western Little Brown Myotis in South Dakota

Most sightings fall in May.

1 South Dakota 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 South Dakota records (table)
MonthRecords
January0
February0
March0
April0
May1
June0
July0
August0
September0
October0
November0
December0

Monthly western little brown myotis occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in South Dakota, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

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

Occurrence map

Where Western Little Brown Myotis has been recorded in South Dakota

1 record mapped · zoom and drag to explore

1 South Dakota record mapped

Where it's recorded in South Dakota

CountyRecords
Custer County 1

The complete county distribution, spread across 1 South Dakota counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

South Dakota has a single little brown bat record since 2000, from Custer County in the southern Black Hills. That’s a thin trace for a bat tied to the Hills’ cave-studded limestone and ponderosa country.

That one report is dated May, too little to describe a season.

NatureServe ranks the species S3, vulnerable, in South Dakota, a notch better than the S1 ranks it now carries through much of the East. Even so, the IUCN lists it as Endangered globally after white-nose syndrome’s sweep across the continent. The Black Hills’ caves, cold, deep, and full of bats, are exactly the places biologists are watching closest.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Little brown myotis roosting alertly on a wooden beam
Full species profile Western Little Brown Myotis Myotis lucifugus Size 8–9.5 cm3.1–3.7 in Weight 6–13 g0.2–0.5 oz Lifespan 35 yr View the full profile

More mammals in South Dakota 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