pond bat

About the pond bat

The pond bat (Myotis dasycneme) is a species of vesper bat. It is found in Eurasia from France to Russia and Kazakhstan. The bat is medium-sized, with a noticeably short tragus for a species in the genus Myotis. Fur is thick and black-brown at the base, with brownish or yellowish-grey fur on the dorsal side and white-grey or yellow-grey fur on the ventral side.

The species is endangered. A large decline in numbers has occurred in the west of its range, especially in the Netherlands, where many nursery sites have been lost. On a global scale the species is only near threatened, but detailed data from the eastern population is needed to draw reliable conclusions.

In the summer this species nests in lowland regions with areas of water, meadows and woods, with winter roosts also occurring in the foothills of mountains. The record for the altitude of a M. dasycneme roost is 1000 meters above sea level, with winter roosts not normally occurring more than 300 meters above sea level. Summer roosts are mostly in roof spaces or church towers, with individuals sometimes found nesting in hollow trees.

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