# Northern bat (*Eptesicus nilssonii*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/northern-bat  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The northern bat (Eptesicus nilssonii), also called the Northern serotine, is a bat in the family Vespertilionidae and the order Chiroptera. It is a small mammal with an adult body mass of 10.72 g, with sources reporting values from 8 to 13 g. This nocturnal invertivore forages in the air and lives in forest habitat. It has 1 litter per year of 1 to 2 young, its lifespan is given as 15.5 years and up to 20 years, and the IUCN lists it as Least Concern.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 8 g – 13 g |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 15.5 years |
| Diet | Invertivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 20 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | forest |
| Young per litter or clutch | 1 – 2 |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Active | At night (nocturnal) |
| Lifestyle | Aerial |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Mammalia
- order: Chiroptera
- family: Vespertilionidae
- genus: Eptesicus
- species: *Eptesicus nilssonii* (Keyserling & Blasius, 1839)

Synonyms: *Cnephaeus nilssonii*, *Eptesicus atratus*, *Eptesicus borealis*, *Eptesicus nilssoni*, *Eptesicus nilssonii nilssonii*, *Eptesicus nilssonii parvus*, *Eptesicus nilssonii parvus*, *Eptesicus parvus*, *Fespertilio nilssonii*, *Vespertilio borealis*, *Vespertilio nilssonii*, *Vesperugo nilssonii*, *Vesperus nilssonii*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the northern bat?

The northern bat is a mammal, a bat in the family Vespertilionidae within the order Chiroptera.

### How much does a northern bat weigh?

An adult Northern bat weighs 10.72 g, with sources reporting values from 8 to 13 g.

### What does the northern bat eat?

The northern bat is an invertivore, and its trophic level is carnivore. It forages in the air at night.

### What habitat does the northern bat live in?

The northern bat lives in forest habitat.

### Is the northern bat endangered?

No. The northern bat is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does a northern bat live?

The northern bat's lifespan is given as 15.5 years, and up to 20 years.

### How many young does the northern bat have?

The northern bat has 1 to 2 young per litter and 1 litter per year.

### Who named the northern bat?

The northern bat, Eptesicus nilssonii, was named by Keyserling & Blasius in 1839, written as (Keyserling & Blasius, 1839).

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Northern bat (Eptesicus nilssonii). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/northern-bat