List of mammals of Alabama

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The U.S. state of Alabama is home to these known indigenous mammal species.[1] Historically, the state's indigenous species included one armadillo species, sixteen bat species, thirteen carnivore species, six insectivore species, one opossum species, four rabbit species, twenty-two rodent species, and three ungulate species.[2][3][4][5][6][7] Four of these native species have become extirpated within the state, including the American bison, cougar, gray wolf, and the elk.[1][8]

There are six known introduced mammal species in the state. These include the black rat, brown rat, fallow deer, wild boar, house mouse, and nutria.[8]

Human predation and habitat destruction has placed several mammal species at risk of extirpation or extinction. The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources lists the conservation status of each species within the state with a rank of lowest, low, moderate, high, and highest concern.[3][5][6][7][8]

Armadillo

Image Scientific name Common name Family Conservation
concern
Dasypus novemcinctus nine-banded armadillo
common long-nosed armadillo		 Dasypodidae Low

Bats

Image Scientific name Common name Family Conservation
concern
Corynorhinus rafinesquii Rafinesque's big-eared bat Vespertilionidae Highest
Eptesicus fuscus big brown bat Vespertilionidae Lowest
Lasionycteris noctivagans silver-haired bat Vespertilionidae Moderate
Lasiurus borealis eastern red bat Vespertilionidae Lowest
Lasiurus cinereus hoary bat Vespertilionidae Moderate
File:Lasiurus intermedius.jpg Lasiurus intermedius northern yellow bat Vespertilionidae High
Lasiurus seminolus Seminole bat Vespertilionidae Lowest
Myotis austroriparius southeastern myotis Vespertilionidae High
Myotis grisescens gray bat Vespertilionidae Highest/
U.S. Fish and Wildlife lists as endangered
Myotis leibii eastern small-footed myotis Vespertilionidae Moderate
Myotis lucifugus little brown bat Vespertilionidae High
Myotis septentrionalis northern long-eared myotis Vespertilionidae High
Myotis sodalis Indiana myotis Vespertilionidae Highest/
U.S. Fish and Wildlife lists as endangered
Nycticeius humeralis evening bat Vespertilionidae Lowest
Perimyotis subflavus eastern pipistrelle
tricolored bat		 Vespertilionidae Lowest
Tadarida brasiliensis Mexican free-tailed bat
Brazilian free-tailed bat		 Molossidae High

Carnivores

Image Scientific name Common name Family Conservation
concern
Canis latrans coyote Canidae Lowest
Canis lupus grey wolf Canidae Extirpated
(now exists in Alaska, Canada, portions of the Great Lakes region and northwestern United States).
Canis lupus rufus red wolf Canidae Extirpated
(U.S. Fish and Wildlife lists as endangered)
Urocyon cinereoargenteus gray fox Canidae Lowest
Vulpes vulpes red fox Canidae Lowest
Ursus americanus American black bear Ursidae Highest/
Range limited to northeast Alabama and Mobile-Tensaw River Delta.

Designated as state land mammal.
Procyon lotor raccoon Procyonidae Lowest
Lontra canadensis North American river otter Mustelidae Low
Mustela frenata long-tailed weasel Mustelidae High
Neovison vison American mink Mustelidae Low
Mephitis mephitis striped skunk Mephitidae Low
Spilogale putorius eastern spotted skunk Mephitidae High
Lynx rufus bobcat Felidae Lowest
Puma concolor cougar
mountain lion
panther
puma
 Felidae Extirpated (now exists in the western United States, southern Florida, and western Canada).

Eulipotyphlans

Image Scientific name Common name Family Conservation
concern
Blarina brevicauda northern short-tailed shrew Soricidae Moderate
Blarina carolinensis southern short-tailed shrew Soricidae Moderate
Cryptotis parva North American least shrew Soricidae Moderate
Sorex hoyi American pygmy shrew Soricidae High
Sorex longirostris southeastern shrew Soricidae Moderate
Scalopus aquaticus eastern mole Talpidae Low

Opossum

Image Scientific name Common name Family Conservation
concern
Didelphis virginiana Virginia opossum
North American opossum		 Didelphidae Low

Rabbits

Image Scientific name Common name Family Conservation
concern
Sylvilagus aquaticus swamp rabbit Leporidae Low
Sylvilagus floridanus eastern cottontail Leporidae Lowest
Sylvilagus obscurus Appalachian cottontail Leporidae High
Sylvilagus palustris marsh rabbit Leporidae High

Rodents

Image Scientific name Common name Family Conservation
concern
Castor canadensis North American beaver Castoridae Lowest
Glaucomys volans southern flying squirrel Sciuridae Lowest
Marmota monax woodchuck
groundhog		 Sciuridae Lowest
Sciurus carolinensis eastern gray squirrel Sciuridae Lowest
Sciurus niger fox squirrel
eastern fox squirrel
Bryant's fox squirrel		 Sciuridae Low
Tamias striatus eastern chipmunk Sciuridae Lowest
Geomys pinetis southeastern pocket gopher Geomyidae High
Microtus ochrogaster prairie vole Cricetidae Moderate
Microtus pinetorum pine vole
woodland vole		 Cricetidae Low
Neotoma cinerea eastern woodrat
Florida woodrat		 Cricetidae Moderate
Neotoma magister Allegheny woodrat Cricetidae High
Ochrotomys nuttalli golden mouse Cricetidae Lowest
Ondatra zibethicus muskrat Cricetidae Lowest
Oryzomys palustris marsh rice rat Cricetidae Lowest
Peromyscus gossypinus cotton mouse Cricetidae Lowest
Peromyscus leucopus white-footed mouse Cricetidae Lowest
Peromyscus polionotus oldfield mouse
beach mouse		 Cricetidae Moderate
Peromyscus polionotus ammobates Alabama beach mouse Cricetidae Highest/
U.S. Fish and Wildlife lists as endangered.

Range limited to Fort Morgan Peninsula and Ono Island in Baldwin County.
Peromyscus polionotus trissyllepsis Perdido Key beach mouse Cricetidae Highest/
U.S. Fish and Wildlife lists as endangered.

Range limited to the barrier island of Perdido Key in Baldwin County, Alabama and Escambia County, Florida.
Reithrodontomys humulis eastern harvest mouse Cricetidae Moderate
Sigmodon hispidus hispid cotton rat Cricetidae Lowest
Mus musculus house mouse Muridae Introduced/
Considered a pest species
Rattus rattus black rat Muridae Introduced/
Considered a pest species
Rattus norvegicus Norway rat
brown rat		 Muridae Introduced/
Considered a pest species
Zapus hudsonius meadow jumping mouse Dipodidae High
Myocaster coypus nutria
coypu
river rat		 Myocastoridae Introduced/
Considered a pest species

Cetaceans

Image Scientific name Common name Family Conservation
concern
Eubalaena glacialis North Atlantic right whale Balaenidae Endangered
Balaenoptera acutorostrata common minke whale Balaenopteridae Least concern
Balaenoptera borealis sei whale Balaenopteridae Endangered
Balaenoptera brydei Bryde's whale Balaenopteridae Data deficient
Balaenoptera musculus blue whale Balaenopteridae Endangered
Balaenoptera physalus fin whale Balaenopteridae Endangered
Megaptera novaeangliae humpback whale Balaenopteridae Least concern
Physeter macrocephalus sperm whale Physeteridae Vulnerable
Kogia breviceps pygmy sperm whale Kogiidae Data deficient
Kogia sima dwarf sperm whale Kogiidae Data deficient
Mesoplodon bidens Sowerby's beaked whale Ziphiidae Data deficient
Mesoplodon densirostris Blainville's beaked whale Ziphiidae Data deficient
Mesoplodon europaeus Gervais' beaked whale Ziphiidae Data deficient
Peponocephala electra melon-headed whale Ziphiidae Data deficient
Ziphius cavirostris Cuvier's beaked whale Ziphiidae Least concern
Feresa attenuata pygmy killer Whale Delphinidae Data deficient
Globicephala macrorhynchus short-finned pilot whale Delphinidae Data deficient
Grampus griseus Risso's dolphin Delphinidae Least concern
Lagenodelphis hosei Fraser's dolphin Delphinidae Least concern
Orcinus orca killer whale Delphinidae Data deficient
Pseudorca crassidens false killer Whale Delphinidae Data deficient
Stenella frontalis Atlantic spotted dolphin Delphinidae Data deficient
Stenella coeruleoalba striped dolphin Delphinidae Data deficient
Stenella attenuata pantropical spotted dolphin Delphinidae Data deficient
Stenella longirostris spinner dolphin Delphinidae Data deficient
Stenella clymene Clymene dolphin Delphinidae Data deficient
Steno bredanensis rough-toothed dolphin Delphinidae Least concern
Tursiops truncatus common bottlenose dolphin Delphinidae Least concern

Ungulates

Image Scientific name Common name Family Conservation
concern
Cervus canadensis elk Cervidae Extirpated
Dama dama fallow deer Cervidae Introduced
Odocoileus virginianus white-tailed deer
Virginia deer		 Cervidae Lowest
Sus scrofa wild boar Suidae Introduced; a significant threat to the ecosystem, they compete heavily with native wildlife and destroy natural plant communities
Bison bison American bison
American buffalo		 Bovidae Extirpated (note: domestic herds exist on farms.[9][10][11])

References

  1. ^ a b Mirarchi, Ralph E. (2004). Alabama Wildlife: Volume One. Tuscaloosa, Alabama: University of Alabama Press. pp. 185–202. ISBN 978-0-81735-1304.
  2. ^ Alden, Peter (1999). National Audubon Society Field Guide to the Southeastern States. New York, New York: Alfred A. Knopf. pp. 350–375. ISBN -0-679-44683-4.
  3. ^ a b "Bats". Outdoor Alabama. Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
  4. ^ "Carnivores". Outdoor Alabama. Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Archived from the original on October 22, 2012. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
  5. ^ a b "Insectivores". Outdoor Alabama. Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
  6. ^ a b "Rabbits". Outdoor Alabama. Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Archived from the original on September 14, 2012. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
  7. ^ a b "Rodents". Outdoor Alabama. Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Archived from the original on October 22, 2012. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
  8. ^ a b c "Mammals". Outdoor Alabama. Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Archived from the original on September 27, 2012. Retrieved October 14, 2012.
  9. ^ "On a farm in south Alabama, the buffalo roam in herds". Gadsden Times. April 2, 2000.
  10. ^ "Former aerospace manager raising bison". The Tuscaloosa News. December 28, 1996.
  11. ^ "Wiregrass Buffalo". WTVY 4. February 23, 2007. Retrieved October 15, 2012.
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