O’SHEA, CRYAN & BOGAN: UNITED STATES BAT SPECIES OF CONCERN 
21 
observed roosting in a small cave in the Peloncillo Mountains of New Mexico each had a single 
young in June of 1962 (the fifth was apparently non-reproductive; Mumford et al., 1964) and six 
observed in June 1960 each had a single young or fetus (Mumford and Zimmerman, 1962); one 
female with a single young was also reported from New Mexico by Findley et al. (1975). Camp¬ 
bell (1934) and Hoffmeister (1959) each also reported single cases of an adult female with one 
young attached in southern Arizona during July and August. Four females taken from Colossal 
Cave in southern Arizona during May 1960 each had single young (Alcorn et al., 1961). Single 
embryos were reported from one female taken in Coahuila, one taken in Jalisco, and one taken in 
Sinaloa, Mexico (Baker, 1956a; Jones et al., 1972; Wat kin s et al., 1972). Thirty-five female Mex¬ 
ican long-tongued bats taken in southern Arizona during August in 1949-1951 had no embryos 
(Hoffmeister and Goodpaster, 1954). We are unaware of any published literature with quantitative 
data concerning other demographic aspects of female reproduction, such as age at first reproduc¬ 
tion and inter-birth intervals. 
Survival: We are unaware of any published literature with quantitative data on survival for 
this species. 
Mortality Factors: We are unaware of published literature with information on mortality fac¬ 
tors affecting this species. 
Population Trend: Mexican long-tongued bats are the least common of the three species of 
nectar feeding bats (Leptonycteris nivalis and L. yerbabuenae are the other two species) that can 
be found seasonally in parts of the southwestern United States, where adult females and young are 
regularly found to outnumber males (Hoffmeister and Goodpaster, 1954; Fleming et al., 2003). The 
three largest colony sizes observed in Arizona and New Mexico during 1999 were 17, 14, and 11 
bats (Cryan and Bogan, 2003), a colony of 40-50 was observed in a building in southern Califor¬ 
nia in 1946 (Huey, 1954a), and a count of 176 was reported at an unspecified U.S. location in a 
compilation by Ellison et al. (2003). 
Cryan and Bogan (2003) compiled a list of 39 historically known locations of roosts of long- 
tongued bats in Arizona and New Mexico. They visited 24 of these sites in summer 1999 and 
reported the bats present at 18 of the 24 locations (75%). Young of the year were observed at a min¬ 
imum of 71% of the sites, suggesting successful reproduction in the summer range. Regarding pop¬ 
ulation status, Cryan and Bogan (2003:316) remarked: “Considering the number of individuals we 
encountered and the relatively high rate of recurrence at historical sites, we do not have sufficient 
evidence to conclude that C. mexicana populations have increased or decreased in recent years.” 
Management Practices and Concerns. — Given the habitats associated with roosting 
locations and the variety and types of roosts occupied, it is likely that loss of riparian habitat is a 
greater threat to this species in the southwestern U.S. than is loss of roosts (Cryan and Bogan, 
2003). Very little information has been well-documented for this species within the U.S. concern¬ 
ing its population ecology, foraging habitat, and interactions with food plants. 
Notes and Comments. — Olson (1947) was bitten on the hands multiple times while captur¬ 
ing these bats between 18 and 28 September 1946. On 30 September he developed cellulitis and 
lymphangitis in one arm, which responded to antibiotics during four days of treatment. However, 
three days afterwards he had to be hospitalized for four days with severe headaches, nausea, and 
fever, which were treated with penicillin, morphine, ice packs, and intravenous glucose and saline. 
He could not account for any other source for this illness other than the bat bites (Olson, 1947). 
Corynorhinus rafinesquii — Rafinesque’s big-eared bat (Family Vespertilionidae) 
Conservation Status. — National and International Designations: U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service (1994, 1996a,b): Species of Concern (inactive, former Category 2 candidate for listing 
