CREDIT: STEVEN R. HUMPHREY 



INDIANA BAT 



Myotis sodalis Miller and Allen 



KINGDOM Animalia 



CLASS Mammalia 



ORDER Chiroptera 



FAMILY Vespertilionidae 



OTHER COMMON 



NAMES Indiana myotis, social bat, 



Kentucky brown bat 



DATE 



Entered into SWIS to be determined 



Updates 28 April 1978 



LEGAL STATUS 



Federal: Endangered (32 FR 4001, 11 March 



1977) 



States: Endangered: Florida, Georgia, Indiana, 



Illinois, Michigan, Mississippi, Mis- 

 souri, New Jersey, New York, North 

 Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Ten- 

 nessee, Vermont. 



REASONS FOR CURRENT STATUS 



Approximately 87% of the entire species 

 population winters in only seven caves (Humph- 

 rey 1978). Disturbance or vandalism by man dis- 

 rupts hibernation and results in deaths and abor- 

 tions of young (Hall 1902, Humphrey and Scud- 

 der 1978). Intrusion by vandals, spelunkers, and 

 biologists have accounted for losses (IBRT 1975). 

 Hall (1962) discusses clustering behavior of Indi- 

 ana bats in caves and states that frequent disrup- 

 tion of congregations could lead to extinction. 



Loss of habitat has caused 50% of the decline 

 over recent years (Humphrey 1978). Some hiber- 

 nation sites have been rendered unsuitable as a 

 result of blocking or impeding air flow into the 

 caves, thus changing the cave's climate (Humphrey 

 1978). Urbanization and deforestation have con- 

 tributed to the species decline (Mohr 1972). 

 Humphrey et al. (1974) found that females breed 

 in scattered nurseries in trees and suggests that 

 losses of large amounts of summer habitat could 

 be catastrophic. 



Natural factors such as a low population 



