13 Types of Bats in Montana (With Photos and Identification Tips)
November 5, 2026
Montana’s night sky belongs to more than owls and insects. Once the sun drops behind the Rockies, a surprising range of bats lifts off from barns, bridges, caves, and tree bark to hunt moths, beetles, and mosquitoes across the state’s mountains, prairies, and river valleys. This bat identification guide profiles 13 of the most notable types of bats in Montana, covering how each one looks, where it roosts, and what makes it different from its neighbors.
Some of these bats, like the hoary bat, are large enough to spot gliding over a lake at dusk. Others, like the western small-footed myotis, weigh about as much as a few sugar packets and require a close look to tell apart from similar Myotis species. Compared with the dozens of tropical species found in places like Costa Rica, Montana’s bat community is smaller, but it still includes several species found almost nowhere else in the country.
Pro Tip: Never pick up or handle a bat, even one that looks sick or grounded. Bats can carry rabies, and Montana wildlife officials recommend letting a professional handle any bat that needs to be removed from a building.
Before getting into each species, the table below offers a quick side-by-side look at how these bats compare in size and typical roost choice.
| Bat Species | Relative Size | Typical Roost |
|---|---|---|
| Big Brown Bat | Large | Buildings, bridges, tree cavities |
| Hoary Bat | Very Large | Tree foliage |
| Eastern Red Bat | Medium | Tree foliage |
| Silver-haired Bat | Medium | Under tree bark, snags |
| Pallid Bat | Large | Rock crevices, cliffs |
| Townsend’s Big-eared Bat | Medium | Caves and mines |
| Spotted Bat | Medium | Cliff crevices |
| Little Brown Myotis | Small | Buildings, caves, bark |
| Western Small-footed Myotis | Very Small | Rock crevices, talus |
| California Myotis | Small | Rock crevices, bark |
| Yuma Myotis | Small | Bridges, buildings near water |
| Long-eared Myotis | Small | Bark, snags, rock crevices |
| Northern Long-eared Bat | Small | Tree bark, cavities |
1. Big Brown Bat
The big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus) is one of the more common species found in Montana, and it is also one of the easiest to recognize once a person knows the field marks. Montana wildlife researchers point to its distinctive dog-like muzzle as a quick way to separate it from the smaller Myotis bats it is often mistaken for.
According to measurements compiled by Wytheville Community College’s park mammal database, the species has a wingspan of approximately 12 inches, with long, uniformly dark brown fur that sets it apart from paler Myotis species. Big brown bats are also found statewide, and are most common wherever suitable roost structures exist, including buildings and rock outcrops. Colonies typically hold anywhere from a handful of individuals to several dozen, and the bats feed heavily on beetles, which makes them a natural check on some of the beetle populations found across the state.
2. Hoary Bat
The hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) is the giant of Montana’s bat community. Montana Outdoors magazine describes it as a species with a wingspan stretching 15 to 16 inches and a total body length of 5 inches, making it the largest bat recorded in the state. Despite that size, it weighs only about 0.7 ounce, since bats trade bulk for flight efficiency.
Its frosted, grizzled fur gives the species its name, and white patches at the wrists and shoulders, along with a bright yellow throat patch, make it fairly easy to identify if one is spotted well. Hoary bats roost alone in tree foliage rather than in colonies, and they are tough enough to keep hunting even when temperatures drop toward freezing. Their diet leans heavily on moths and beetles, though they have been known to kill and eat smaller bats in some parts of their range.
3. Eastern Red Bat
The eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis) is a solitary, tree-roosting species with rusty-orange fur frosted at the tips, giving it a slightly two-toned look in good light. In Montana it sits near the western edge of its range, so sightings are far less common here than in the hardwood forests of the eastern United States, including states like Alabama, where the species is much more regularly recorded.
Like other red bats, this species tends to roost alone among leaves rather than in caves or buildings, often tucking itself into foliage in a way that makes it resemble a dry, curled leaf. It migrates seasonally rather than hibernating through Montana’s winters, and it typically hunts moths and other flying insects over open fields, forest edges, and river corridors.
4. Silver-Haired Bat
The silver-haired bat (Lasionycteris noctivagans) gets its name from dark blackish-brown fur tipped in silvery white, which gives it a frosted look similar to the hoary bat’s, though it is considerably smaller. It typically roosts under loose bark or inside cracks in dead trees and snags, often near streams, lakes, or other water sources.
This species is usually one of the first bats seen flying at dusk, with a slow, fluttering flight pattern that makes it relatively easy to watch once it emerges. Many silver-haired bats are also strong migrants, moving long distances between summer and winter ranges, with some populations traveling as far north as Canada to breed during the warmer months.
5. Pallid Bat
The pallid bat (Antrozous pallidus) stands out for its pale, sandy-yellow fur and unusually large ears relative to its body size. Unlike most Montana bats, it frequently forages on the ground, picking up crickets, beetles, and even scorpions directly off rock and soil rather than catching everything in midair.
In Montana, pallid bats are associated with the dry canyon country and rocky outcrops of the eastern and south-central parts of the state, where they roost in rock crevices and cliff faces during the day. This desert-adapted lifestyle links it to populations found much farther south, including the arid landscapes of New Mexico, where pallid bats are also a familiar sight around canyon walls.
6. Townsend’s Big-Eared Bat
Townsend’s big-eared bat (Corynorhinus townsendii) is instantly recognizable by its enormous ears, which can stretch to nearly half its body length and curl back like a ram’s horns when the bat is resting. Its fur is a soft grayish-brown, and its overall build is fairly slender compared with heavier species like the big brown bat.
This species depends heavily on caves, mines, and other cavern-like structures for both hibernation and raising young, which makes it especially sensitive to human disturbance during winter and summer roosting periods. Townsend’s big-eared bats are found in scattered rocky canyon habitat across Montana, and related populations show up in cave country as far away as Texas.
7. Spotted Bat
The spotted bat (Euderma maculatum) is arguably the most striking bat in Montana, with jet-black fur broken by three large white spots on its back and enormous, almost translucent pink ears. It is also one of the rarest mammals documented in North America, and sightings anywhere in its range are considered notable.
Spotted bats roost almost exclusively in narrow cliff crevices in rugged badland and canyon terrain, which keeps most populations well away from people. One of the more unusual traits of this species is its low-frequency echolocation call, which falls within a range that some people can actually hear as faint clicking in the night air.
Key Insight: Most bat echolocation calls are pitched far above human hearing, but the spotted bat’s calls are low enough that some people can hear a faint, high-pitched clicking as the bat forages overhead.
8. Little Brown Myotis
The little brown myotis (Myotis lucifugus), also commonly called the little brown bat and listed as a Species of Concern in Montana’s state wildlife records, has small, glossy brown fur and a build typical of the Myotis group. Telling it apart from other small Montana Myotis species usually requires a close, in-hand examination rather than a quick glance.
This species was once one of the most abundant bats in North America, roosting in large colonies inside buildings, attics, and under bark during the summer before moving to caves and mines to hibernate. Populations farther east, including those documented around New York, have been hit hard by white-nose syndrome, a fungal disease that has reshaped how wildlife agencies track hibernating bats across the continent. Little brown myotis share some roosting habits with unrelated colonial species like evening bats, even though the two are not closely related.
Important Note: White-nose syndrome has caused severe population declines in several hibernating bat species across North America. While the disease has not affected every state equally, Montana wildlife agencies continue to monitor cave and mine hibernacula closely.
9. Western Small-Footed Myotis
The western small-footed myotis (Myotis ciliolabrum) is one of the tiniest bats found in Montana, with a dull tan-brown coat and a distinctive black mask-like patch across its face. Its small feet, which give the species its name, are one of the subtle details researchers use to separate it from similar-looking Myotis bats.
This species favors dry, rocky habitat such as canyon walls, talus slopes, and badlands, where it roosts in narrow rock crevices during the day. Its foraging flight tends to be low and erratic, often close to cliff faces, which mirrors the habitat used by small-footed myotis populations farther east in states like North Dakota.
10. California Myotis
The California myotis (Myotis californicus) is a small, pale bat most often found in the forested valleys and foothills of western Montana. Despite the name, this species ranges well beyond California, and Montana sits near the northeastern edge of its broader distribution.
California myotis bats have an erratic, fluttering flight style that can make them tricky to track in the air, and they typically roost in rock crevices, loose tree bark, or small building gaps. For readers curious how this species behaves closer to the core of its range, Animal of Things’ guide to bats of California covers it alongside the state’s other Myotis species.
11. Yuma Myotis
The Yuma myotis (Myotis yumanensis) looks so similar to the little brown myotis that the two are frequently confused in the field, though the Yuma myotis tends to have duller, less glossy fur. This species is strongly tied to water, and it rarely strays far from rivers, ponds, or irrigation canals.
At dusk, Yuma myotis bats forage low over the water’s surface, skimming for mosquitoes, midges, and other aquatic insects. Colonies often roost in bridges, buildings, or rock crevices positioned close to a reliable water source, which makes bridge inspections a common way wildlife surveyors track this species across Montana’s river valleys.
12. Long-Eared Myotis
The long-eared myotis (Myotis evotis) is named for ears that extend noticeably past the nose when laid forward, a feature that separates it from most other Montana Myotis species. This bat is listed as a Species of Concern in the state’s native species records.
It favors coniferous forest habitat and roosts under loose bark, in snags, and within rock crevices, often picking insects directly off leaves and branches rather than catching everything in open flight. Its slow, highly maneuverable flight style suits this close-to-vegetation hunting strategy, a trait shared with long-eared myotis populations documented in forested regions as far away as Kentucky.
13. Northern Long-Eared Bat
The northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis) closely resembles the long-eared myotis but is found mainly at the edge of its range in the northeastern part of Montana. It is a forest-dependent species that roosts under loose bark and inside tree cavities during the summer, then moves to caves and mines to hibernate through winter.
This species has suffered some of the steepest population losses of any North American bat due to white-nose syndrome, and it is federally protected as an endangered species as a result. Steep declines have also been documented in other parts of its range, including populations monitored in Indiana, where the disease has reshaped hibernation-season bat surveys.
Montana’s bats fill a role that is easy to overlook: a single colony of insect-eating bats can consume enormous numbers of beetles, moths, and mosquitoes in a single summer, which makes healthy bat populations a genuine benefit to farms, forests, and backyards alike. Protecting the caves, old trees, cliffs, and river corridors these 13 species depend on matters just as much for Montana’s ecosystems as protecting better-known wildlife like the state’s eagles and hawks.
Anyone exploring Montana’s wild spaces after dark is likely sharing the sky with more bat species than they realize, from the common big brown bat roosting under a barn eave to the rare spotted bat flickering along a badland cliff. For readers interested in how Montana’s smaller wildlife compares across the rest of the state, Animal of Things also covers the spiders found throughout Montana.