Bats in my belfry! What type is he?

So look what we noticed:

http://www.wooleysark.com/kids/graphics/2005_03_18-08P.jpg
http://www.wooleysark.com/kids/graphics/2005_03_18-04P.jpg

He’s hanging out (HA!) between the storm window and the screen in a window in the nursery. He can easily get out anytime he wants.

Cute little devil, isn’t he?

But what type is he? He’s about 3 inches long and covered in fur with sort of a pub nose?

I know little about bats except that they’re cool.

He doesn’t seem intimidated by us at all. We noticed the odd shadow on the blinds. When we pulled them up it didn’t phase him at all. Now he’s snoozing in a corner.

Aww, how lucky for you! I don’t know what kind it is, though.

Well, I don’t know where you and Kilroy are located, but he appears to be a little brown bat. No, I’m not being annoying, that’s really what he’s commonly called (as opposed to the big brown bat). Uber-specific latin name is Myotis lucifugus, and you can see the range of the species here. These guys seem as if they’re much mor common than the big brown bat.

And you’re right - they’re cute little buggers. Not so fond of them inside my house, with me, but I likes 'em otherwise.

There’s not enough detail in the photos to be sure of the species. The two most common bats that enter houses in most of the US are the Little Brown Bat Myotis lucifugus and the Big Brown Bat Eptesicus fuscus. There are lots of other possibilities, though.

Is that a nose like W.C. Fields? :slight_smile:

FTR we’re in SE Ohio on the Ohio River. Love those floods.

He’s snuggled up in a corner asleep right now. What sort of details would help?

Shape of the ears, especially the sort of flange that sticks up in the middle (tragus); characteristics of the rod that extends from the hind foot along the rear end of the tail membrane (calcar).

The Big Brown Bat, besides being larger than the Little Brown Bat (duh), has a larger muzzle, more rounded ears, a rounded tragus, and the calcar has a keel.

The Little Brown Bat has a smaller muzzle, relatively longer ears, a longer thinner tragus, and the calcar is unkeeled.

Ooh, box him up and send him to me! We put up a bat house last year, but it was late in the season, so nobody took residence. We’re hoping this year’s migration brings us a nice bug-eating horde.