Mammals
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Species Types
Scientific Name
Sus scrofa
Description
Feral hogs cause millions of dollars in agricultural, environmental, and property damage. As they root and wallow, they plow the soil to depths of 2–8 inches — sometimes for many acres! And this is just the beginning of the trouble they can cause to humans, livestock, and the environment.
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Scientific Name
Perimyotis subflavus (formerly Pipistrellus subflavus)
Description
Tri-colored bats, formerly called eastern pipistrelles, are relatively small and look pale yellowish or pale reddish brown. The main hairs are dark gray at the base, broadly banded with yellowish brown, and tipped with dark brown.
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Species Types
Scientific Name
Myotis grisescens
Description
Gray myotises are difficult to distinguish from other mouse-eared bats. A key identifying feature of the gray myotis is that its wing is attached to the ankle and not at the base of the toes. It’s an endangered species.
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Scientific Name
Myotis sodalis
Description
The Indiana myotis, or Indiana bat, summers along streams and rivers in north Missouri, raising its young under the bark of certain trees. It is an endangered species.
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Scientific Name
Myotis lucifugus
Description
The little brown myotis (little brown bat) is one of our most common bats, but populations are declining. White-nose syndrome has taken a heavy toll in northeastern states. This species is now listed as vulnerable across its range.
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About 14 species in Missouri
Description
Bats are the only mammals capable of sustained flight. At least 14 species of bats occur in Missouri; they are all relatively small, and they eat insects. Many of them are declining.
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Scientific Name
Dasypus novemcinctus
Description
There’s no other animal in Missouri that can be mistaken for an armadillo! In the 1950s, they were not considered residents, but now they are regularly found in the southern half of the state.
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Scientific Name
Peromyscus maniculatus
Description
The deer mouse is found statewide, usually in open habitats like fields and grasslands. It and our other three species of Peromyscus mice look a lot alike.
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Scientific Name
Poliocitellus franklinii (formerly Spermophilus franklinii)
Description
Franklin’s ground squirrel is brownish gray speckled with black, looking a little like an eastern gray squirrel but with a less bushy tail and smaller ears. It occurs in and near grasslands in the northern quarter of Missouri.
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Species Types
Scientific Name
Cervus canadensis
Description
Very large members of the deer family, elk are brown or tan above with darker underparts, with a thick neck and yellowish-brown rump patch and tail. Elk have been restored to portions of Carter, Reynolds, and Shannon counties.
See Also
About Mammals in Missouri
More than 70 species of wild mammals live in Missouri: opossums; shrews and moles; bats; rabbits; woodchuck, squirrels, beaver, mice, voles, and other rodents; coyote, foxes, bear, raccoon, weasels, otter, mink, skunks, bobcat, and other carnivores; deer and elk; and more. Most of us recognize mammals easily — they have fur, are warm-blooded, nurse their young, and breathe air.