The
Indiana Bat is one of the 15 species of bats
found in Tennessee. Adults grow to about 3 inches, have a wing span of
10
inches, and weigh about 1/4 ounce. The
Indiana Bat is on the
U.S.
Endangered Species List and classified as endangered throughout its range.
States where they are found include AL, AR, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MD, MI,
MO, MS, NC, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA,
SC, TN, VA, VT, WV.
Indiana Bats are insectivore eating mostly flying insects. Usually hunting above the tree canopy
they are one of the first bats to emerge in the evening. They find their
food using echolocation.
Limestone caves are used for winter hibernation. The following caves are
considered Critical habitat in the Southeast: White Oak Blowhole Cave (Blount,
TN); Bat Cave (Carter, KY); Coach Cave (Edmonson, KY).
Bats are the only members of the mammal family that can fly. Like all
mammals they have fur and are warm blooded. They also give live birth and
produce milk for their babies. Bats are in the scientific order Chiroptera (kie-rop-ter-a), which means
'hand-wing' and are known to live from 10 to 32 years.
While most people generally think of bats living in caves, in the summer
time bats actually live behind bark, in tree's, jungles, and man made
structures such as buildings, barns, and bridges.
Bats provide an extremely important service for the environment in that they
eat large quantities insects. In fact some bats can eat as many as 1,200
insects in one hour. Since some insects such as misquotes carry diseases
including the West Nile Virus and other insects like Cucumber Beatles and moths
can cause severe crop damage, bats are doing humans a huge favor as well.
Bat Facts:
• There are more than 1,100 bat species.
• 70% of bats are insectivores.
• Bats make up almost 25% of all mammal species.
• a single brown bat can catch more than 1,200 insects per hour
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