Deborah Rocque Assistant Director, Science Applications | US Fish and Wildlife Services
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has approved a revised recovery plan for the Mexican long-nosed bat, an endangered migratory species from Mexico that is also found seasonally in West Texas and New Mexico. The revised plan establishes criteria for downlisting and delisting the Mexican long-nosed bat, which was listed as endangered on September 30, 1988.
“The Mexican long-nosed bat uses specific roosts for different life stages,” said Dr. Jade Florence, Fish and Wildlife Biologist with the Service’s Austin Ecological Services Field Office. “After mating, males remain south in Mexico, and the pregnant females migrate north to Texas and follow the ‘nectar corridor’ of flower blooms. To help with recovery, it is critical to protect these caves and conserve plants near roosting sites and along migratory routes.”
There is only one confirmed mating roost located in Mexico. In the U.S., there are two identified roosts, both on federally protected land: Big Bend National Park in Texas and Bureau of Land Management Wilderness Protected Area in New Mexico. The Mexican long-nosed bat mates and gives birth only once a year.
Feeding on nectar, the Mexican long-nosed bat pollinates more than 50 species of plants in the American southwest, including several agave species. Agaves have been valued by people for more than 10,000 years for their food, drink, and other natural products.
Successful recovery efforts will continue to involve cooperation among federal and state agencies, Tribes, local agencies, private entities, and other stakeholders. Additional recovery practices include bat research and environmental education to support conservation efforts and reduce disturbances from human activities entering bat caves.
Recovery plans are not regulatory but provide a framework for guiding a species’ recovery and criteria indicating when federal protection may no longer be necessary. The plan describes actions needed to achieve recovery of the species, establishes downlisting and delisting criteria, and estimates the time and cost required to implement these actions.
The recovery plan for the Mexican long-nosed bat is available online at ecos.fws.gov/ecp/species/8203.
