Cave Bats

Importance / Issues

Two species of cave-roosting bats at Mammoth Cave National Park are listed as “endangered” and one species of cave-roosting bats is considered a “species of concern” by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 

Two species of cave-roosting bats at the park are listed as “endangered”, two are listed as “threatened”, and one is listed as “special concern” by the Kentucky State Nature Preserves Commission.

Cave-roosting bats are important to the nutrient-poor cave ecosystem because they import organic material which supports a specialized cave invertebrate community.

Bats are considered good indicators of the condition of the park’s surface and cave ecosystems because they respond to changes in resource conditions.

Management Applications

Summer cave-roosting bat demographic parameters will need to be established and changes tracked over time to understand the baseline dynamics of the summer cave-roosting bat populations on the park.

Hibernating bat relative abundance trends in known hibernacula caves and hibernating bat distribution among these caves will be tracked over time in order to understand how management actions can impact hibernating bat relative abundance and cave use on the park. 

Knowing whether or not a correlation exists between cave temperature and relative humidity trends and hibernating bat relative abundance in, and usage of, known hibernacula caves will enable ecologists to understand how management actions can alter cave environs which affect bat cave use on the park. 

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