List of mammals of the Bahamas
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This is a list of the mammal species recorded in the Bahamas. Of the mammal species in
the Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the ar ...
, two are endangered, three are vulnerable, and one is considered to be extinct. The following tags are used to highlight each species' conservation status as assessed by the
International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of nat ...
:


Order:

Sirenia The Sirenia (), commonly referred to as sea-cows or sirenians, are an order of fully aquatic, herbivorous mammals that inhabit swamps, rivers, estuaries, marine wetlands, and coastal marine waters. The Sirenia currently comprise two distinct ...
(manatees and dugongs)

Sirenia is an order of fully aquatic, herbivorous mammals that inhabit rivers, estuaries, coastal marine waters, swamps, and marine wetlands. All four species are endangered. *Family:
Trichechidae Trichechidae is a family of sirenians that includes all living manatees and several extinct genera. Systematics TRICHECHIDAE *MiosireninaeM. Voss. 2014. On the invalidity of Halitherium schinzii Kaup, 1838 (Mammalia, Sirenia), with comments o ...
**Genus: ''
Trichechus Manatees (family Trichechidae, genus ''Trichechus'') are large, fully aquatic, mostly herbivorous marine mammals sometimes known as sea cows. There are three accepted living species of Trichechidae, representing three of the four living species ...
'' ***
West Indian manatee The West Indian manatee (''Trichechus manatus''), also known as the North American manatee, is a large, aquatic mammal native to warm coastal areas of the Caribbean, from the eastern US to northern Brazil. Living alone or in herds, it feeds on un ...
, ''T. manatus''


Order:

Rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are n ...
ia (rodents)

Rodents make up the largest order of mammals, with over 40% of mammalian species. They have two
incisor Incisors (from Latin ''incidere'', "to cut") are the front teeth present in most mammals. They are located in the premaxilla above and on the mandible below. Humans have a total of eight (two on each side, top and bottom). Opossums have 18, wher ...
s in the upper and lower jaw which grow continually and must be kept short by gnawing. Most rodents are small though the capybara can weigh up to 45 kg (100 lb). *Suborder:
Hystricomorpha The term Hystricomorpha (from Greek ὕστριξ, ''hystrix'' 'porcupine' and Greek μορφή, ''morphē'' 'form') has had many definitions throughout its history. In the broadest sense, it refers to any rodent (except dipodoids) with a hystr ...
**Family: Capromyidae ***Subfamily: Capromyinae ****Genus: ''
Geocapromys ''Geocapromys'' is a genus of rodent belonging to the hutia subfamily and are currently only found on the Bahamas and Jamaica. However, they formerly ranged throughout the Caribbean, from Cuba to the Cayman Islands to even islands off mainland ...
'' *****
Bahamian hutia The Bahamian hutia or Ingraham's hutia (''Geocapromys ingrahami'') is a small, furry, rat-like mammal found only in the Bahamas. About the size of a rabbit, it lives in burrows in forests or shrubland, emerging at night to feed on leaves, fruit, ...
, ''G. ingrahami'' **Family: Muridae ***Subfamily:
Murinae The Old World rats and mice, part of the subfamily Murinae in the family Muridae, comprise at least 519 species. Members of this subfamily are called murines. In terms of species richness, this subfamily is larger than all mammal families excep ...
****Genus: ''
Rattus ''Rattus'' is a genus of muroid rodents, all typically called rats. However, the term rat can also be applied to rodent species outside of this genus. Species and description The best-known ''Rattus'' species are the black rat (''R. rattus'') ...
'' ***** Black rat, ''R. rattus'' introduced


Order:

Chiroptera Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bir ...
(bats)

The bats' most distinguishing feature is that their forelimbs are developed as wings, making them the only mammals capable of flight. Bat species account for about 20% of all mammals. *Family: Noctilionidae **Genus: '' Noctilio'' ***
Greater bulldog bat The greater bulldog bat or fisherman bat (''Noctilio leporinus'') is a species of fishing bat native to Latin America (Spanish: ''murciélago pescador''; Portuguese: ''morcego-pescador''). The bat uses echolocation to detect water ripples made ...
, ''N. leporinus'' *Family:
Vespertilionidae Vespertilionidae is a family of microbats, of the order Chiroptera, flying, insect-eating mammals variously described as the common, vesper, or simple nosed bats. The vespertilionid family is the most diverse and widely distributed of bat famili ...
**Subfamily:
Vespertilioninae The Vespertilioninae are a subfamily of vesper bats from the family Vespertilionidae. Classification Subfamily Vespertilioninae *Tribe Antrozoini **Genus '' Antrozous'' *** Pallid bat, ''Antrozous pallidus'' **Genus '' Bauerus'' *** Van Geld ...
***Genus: ''
Eptesicus ''Eptesicus'' is a genus of bats, commonly called house bats or serotine bats, in the family Vespertilionidae. The genus name is likely derived from the Greek words ''ptetikos'' 'able to fly' or ''petomai'' 'house flier', although this is not ce ...
'' ****
Big brown bat The big brown bat (''Eptesicus fuscus'') is a species of vesper bat distributed widely throughout North America, the Caribbean, and the northern portion of South America. It was first described as a species in 1796. Compared to other microbat ...
, ''E. fuscus'' ***Genus: ''
Lasiurus ''Lasiurus'' is a genus of bats in the family Vespertilionidae Vespertilionidae is a family of microbats, of the order Chiroptera, flying, insect-eating mammals variously described as the common, vesper, or simple nosed bats. The vespertilio ...
'' **** Minor red bat, ''L. minor'' *Family: Molossidae **Genus: ''
Tadarida The genus ''Tadarida'' has 9 or more species of free-tailed bats divided into two subgenera, with the first of these containing seven species spread across the Old World (including southern Europe and North Africa, large parts of southern Asia, ...
'' ***
Mexican free-tailed bat The Mexican free-tailed bat or Brazilian free-tailed bat (''Tadarida brasiliensis'') is a medium-sized bat native to the Americas, so named because its tail can be almost half its total length and is not attached to its uropatagium. It has been ...
, ''T. brasiliensis'' *Family: Phyllostomidae **Subfamily: Phyllostominae ***Genus: ''
Macrotus ''Macrotus'' is a genus of bats in the Neotropical family Phyllostomidae. This genus contains two species, ''Macrotus californicus'' commonly known as California leaf-nosed bat and ''Macrotus waterhousii'' commonly known as Mexican or Waterho ...
'' ****
Waterhouse's leaf-nosed bat Waterhouse's leaf-nosed bat (''Macrotus waterhousii'') is a species of big-eared bat in the family Phyllostomidae. It is found in the Cayman Islands, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Haiti, Jamaica, and Mexico, with a range from Sonora ...
, ''M. waterhousii'' **Subfamily: Brachyphyllinae ***Genus: '' Brachyphylla'' ****
Cuban fruit-eating bat The Cuban fruit-eating bat (''Brachyphylla nana'') is a species of bat in the family Phyllostomidae found in the Cayman Islands, Cuba, and Hispaniola (both the Dominican Republic and Haiti).It has been extirpated from the Bahamas and Jamaica ...
, ''B. nana'' extirpated **Subfamily: Phyllonycterinae ***Genus: '' Erophylla'' **** Buffy flower bat, ''E. sezekorni'' **Subfamily: Glossophaginae ***Genus: '' Monophyllus'' **** Leach's single leaf bat, ''M. redmani'' **Subfamily: Stenodermatinae ***Genus: ''
Artibeus The Neotropical fruit bats (''Artibeus'') are a genus of bats within the subfamily Stenodermatinae. The genus consists of 12 species, which are native to Central and South America, as well as parts of the Caribbean. Description These bats grow t ...
'' ****
Jamaican fruit bat The Jamaican, common or Mexican fruit bat (''Artibeus jamaicensis'') is a fruit-eating bat native to Mexico, through Central America to northwestern South America, as well as the Greater and many of the Lesser Antilles. It is also an uncommon re ...
, ''A. jamaicensis'' *Family:
Natalidae The family Natalidae, or funnel-eared bats, are found from Mexico to Brazil and the Caribbean islands. The family has three genera, '' Chilonatalus'', '' Natalus'' and '' Nyctiellus''. They are slender bats with unusually long tails and, as th ...
**Genus: '' Chilonatalus'' ***
Bahaman funnel-eared bat The Bahaman funnel-eared bat (''Chilonatalus tumidifrons'') is a species of bat in the family Natalidae. It is endemic to the Bahamas, in the northeastern Caribbean. It was first discovered by Miller in 1903. They are listed as "near threatened ...
, ''C. tumidifrons'' **Genus: ''
Nyctiellus Gervais's funnel-eared bat (''Nyctiellus lepidus'') is a species of bat in the family Natalidae. It is the only species within the genus ''Nyctiellus''. It is found in Bahamas and Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, Rep ...
'' ***
Gervais's funnel-eared bat Gervais's funnel-eared bat (''Nyctiellus lepidus'') is a species of bat in the family Natalidae. It is the only species within the genus ''Nyctiellus''. It is found in Bahamas and Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, Re ...
, ''N. lepidus''


Order: Cetacea (whales)

The order Cetacea includes
whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully aquatic placental marine mammals. As an informal and colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea, i.e. all cetaceans apart from dolphins and ...
s,
dolphin A dolphin is an aquatic mammal within the infraorder Cetacea. Dolphin species belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontoporiidae (the ...
s and porpoises. They are the mammals most fully adapted to aquatic life with a spindle-shaped nearly hairless body, protected by a thick layer of blubber, and forelimbs and tail modified to provide propulsion underwater. *Suborder: Mysticeti **Family: Balaenopteridae (baleen whales) ***Genus: ''
Eubalaena Right whales are three species of large baleen whales of the genus ''Eubalaena'': the North Atlantic right whale (''E. glacialis''), the North Pacific right whale (''E. japonica'') and the Southern right whale (''E. australis''). They are class ...
'' ****
North Atlantic right whale The North Atlantic right whale (''Eubalaena glacialis'') is a baleen whale, one of three right whale species belonging to the genus '' Eubalaena'', all of which were formerly classified as a single species. Because of their docile nature, their s ...
, ''E. glacialis'' ***Genus: ''
Balaenoptera ''Balaenoptera'' () is a genus of rorquals containing eight extant species. ''Balaenoptera'' comprises all but two of the extant species in its family (the humpback whale and gray whale); the genus is currently polyphyletic, with the two afore ...
'' ****
Common minke whale The common minke whale or northern minke whale (''Balaenoptera acutorostrata'') is a species of minke whale within the suborder of baleen whales. It is the smallest species of the rorquals and the second smallest species of baleen whale. Althoug ...
, ''Balaenoptera acutorostrata'' **** Sei whale, ''Balaenoptera borealis'' **** Bryde's whale, ''Balaenoptera brydei'' ****
Blue whale The blue whale (''Balaenoptera musculus'') is a marine mammal and a baleen whale. Reaching a maximum confirmed length of and weighing up to , it is the largest animal known to have ever existed. The blue whale's long and slender body can ...
, ''Balaenoptera musculus'' ****
Fin whale The fin whale (''Balaenoptera physalus''), also known as finback whale or common rorqual and formerly known as herring whale or razorback whale, is a cetacean belonging to the parvorder of baleen whales. It is the second-longest species of ce ...
, ''Balaenoptera physalus'' ***Genus: ''
Megaptera The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh up to . The hu ...
'' ****
Humpback whale The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh up to . The hu ...
, ''Megaptera novaeangliae'' *Suborder: Odontoceti **Superfamily:
Platanistoidea River dolphins are a polyphyletic group of fully aquatic mammals that reside exclusively in freshwater or brackish water. They are an informal grouping of dolphins, which itself is a paraphyletic group within the infraorder Cetacea. Extant riv ...
***Family:
Delphinidae Oceanic dolphins or Delphinidae are a widely distributed family of dolphins that live in the sea. Close to forty extant species are recognised. They include several big species whose common names contain "whale" rather than "dolphin", such as the ...
(marine dolphins) ****Genus: ''
Delphinus Delphinus (Pronounced or ) is a small constellation in the Northern Celestial Hemisphere, close to the celestial equator. Its name is the Latin version for the Greek word for dolphin (). It is one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd c ...
'' *****
Short-beaked common dolphin The common dolphin (''Delphinus delphis'') is the most abundant cetacean in the world, with a global population of about six million. Despite this fact and its vernacular name, the common dolphin is not thought of as the archetypal dolphin, with ...
, ''Delphinus delphis'' DD ****Genus: '' Feresa'' *****
Pygmy killer whale The pygmy killer whale (''Feresa attenuata'') is a poorly known and rarely seen oceanic dolphin. It is the only species in the genus ''Feresa''. It derives its common name from sharing some physical characteristics with the orca also known as t ...
, ''Feresa attenuata'' DD ****Genus: '' Globicephala'' *****
Short-finned pilot whale The short-finned pilot whale (''Globicephala macrorhynchus'') is one of the two species of cetaceans in the genus '' Globicephala'', which it shares with the long-finned pilot whale (''G. melas''). It is part of the oceanic dolphin family (Del ...
, ''Globicephala macrorhyncus'' DD ****Genus: '' Lagenodelphis'' *****
Fraser's dolphin Fraser's dolphin or the Sarawak dolphin (''Lagenodelphis hosei'') is a cetacean in the family Delphinidae found in deep waters in the Pacific Ocean and to a lesser extent in the Indian and Atlantic Oceans. Taxonomy ''Lagenodelphis hosei'' is spe ...
, ''Lagenodelphis hosei'' DD ****Genus: ''
Grampus Grampus may refer to: Animals *''Grampus'', the genus and another name for Risso's dolphin, ''Grampus griseus'' *A synonym of the genus ''Orcinus'' *Another name for ''Orcinus orca'', the killer whale or orca *Another name for the hellbender, a sp ...
'' *****
Risso's dolphin Risso's dolphin (''Grampus griseus'') is a dolphin, the only species of the genus ''Grampus''. Some of the closest related species to these dolphins include: pilot whales (''Globicephala'' spp.), pygmy killer whales (''Feresa attenuata''), melon ...
, ''Grampus griseus'' DD ****Genus: ''
Orcinus ''Orcinus'' is a genus of Delphinidae, the family of carnivorous marine mammals known as dolphins. It includes the largest delphinid species, ''Orcinus orca'', known as the orca or killer whale. Two extinct species are recognised, '' Orcinus pale ...
'' *****
Killer whale The orca or killer whale (''Orcinus orca'') is a toothed whale belonging to the oceanic dolphin family, of which it is the largest member. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Orcinus'' and is recognizable by its black-and-white ...
, ''Orcinus orca'' DD ****Genus: '' Peponocephala'' *****
Melon-headed whale The melon-headed whale (''Peponocephala electra''), also known less commonly as the electra dolphin, little killer whale, or many-toothed blackfish, is a toothed whale of the oceanic dolphin family (Delphinidae). The common name is derived fro ...
, ''Peponocephala electra'' DD ****Genus: ''
Pseudorca ''Pseudorca'' is a genus of cetaceans with three members which include ''Pseudorca yokoyamai'', ''Pseudorca yuanliensis'' and ''Pseudorca crassidens ''Pseudorca'' is a genus of cetacea Cetacea (; , ) is an infraorder of aquatic mammals tha ...
'' *****
False killer whale The false killer whale (''Pseudorca crassidens'') is a species of oceanic dolphin that is the only extant representative of the genus '' Pseudorca''. It is found in oceans worldwide but mainly in tropical regions. It was first described in 184 ...
, ''Pseudorca crassidens'' DD ****Genus: '' Stenella'' *****
Pantropical spotted dolphin The pantropical spotted dolphin (''Stenella attenuata'') is a species of dolphin found in all the world's temperate and tropical oceans. The species was beginning to come under threat due to the killing of millions of individuals in tuna purse s ...
, ''Stenella attenuata'' DD ***** Clymene dolphin, ''Stenella clymene'' DD *****
Striped dolphin The striped dolphin (''Stenella coeruleoalba'') is an extensively studied dolphin found in temperate and tropical waters of all the world's oceans. It is a member of the oceanic dolphin family, Delphinidae. Taxonomy The striped dolphin is one o ...
, ''Stenella coeruleoalba'' DD *****
Atlantic spotted dolphin The Atlantic spotted dolphin (''Stenella frontalis'') is a dolphin found in warm temperate and tropical waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Older members of the species have a very distinctive spotted coloration all over their bodies. Taxonomy The Atl ...
, ''Stenella frontalis'' DD *****
Spinner dolphin The spinner dolphin (''Stenella longirostris'') is a small dolphin found in off-shore tropical waters around the world. It is famous for its acrobatic displays in which it rotates around its longitudinal axis as it leaps through the air. It is a ...
, ''Stenella longirostris'' DD ****Genus: '' Steno'' *****
Rough-toothed dolphin The rough-toothed dolphin (''Steno bredanensis'') is a species of dolphin that can be found in deep warm and tropical waters around the world. The species was first described by Georges Cuvier in 1823. The genus name ''Steno'', of which this spe ...
, ''Steno bredanensis'' DD ****Genus: '' Tursiops'' *****
Common bottlenose dolphin The common bottlenose dolphin or Atlantic bottlenose dolphin (''Tursiops truncatus'') is a wide-ranging marine mammal of the family Delphinidae. The common bottlenose dolphin is a very familiar dolphin due to the wide exposure it gets in captiv ...
, ''Tursiops truncatus'' ***Family: Physeteridae (sperm whales) ****Genus: ''
Physeter ''Physeter'' is a genus of toothed whales. There is only one living species in this genus: the sperm whale (''Physeter macrocephalus''). Some extremely poorly known fossil species have also been assigned to the same genus including ''Physeter an ...
'' ***** Sperm whale, ''Physeter catodon'' DD ***Family: Kogiidae (dwarf sperm whales) ****Genus: ''
Kogia ''Kogia'' is a genus of toothed whales within the superfamily Physeteroidea comprising two extant and two extinct species from the Neogene *Pygmy sperm whale, ''Kogia breviceps'' *Dwarf sperm whale, ''Kogia sima'' *†'' Kogia pusilla'', Italy, ...
'' *****
Pygmy sperm whale The pygmy sperm whale (''Kogia breviceps'') is one of two extant species in the family Kogiidae in the sperm whale superfamily. They are not often sighted at sea, and most of what is known about them comes from the examination of stranded speci ...
, ''Kogia breviceps'' DD *****
Dwarf sperm whale The dwarf sperm whale (''Kogia sima'') is a sperm whale that inhabits temperate and tropical oceans worldwide, in particular continental shelves and slopes. It was first described by biologist Richard Owen in 1866, based on illustrations by n ...
, ''Kogia sima'' DD **Superfamily Ziphioidea ***Family: Ziphidae (beaked whales) ****Genus: ''
Mesoplodon Mesoplodont whales are 16 species of toothed whale in the genus ''Mesoplodon'', making it the largest genus in the cetacean order. Two species were described as recently as 1991 (pygmy beaked whale) and 2002 (Perrin's beaked whale), and marine ...
'' ***** Gervais' beaked whale, ''Mesoplodon europaeus'' DD ***** Blainville's beaked whale, ''Mesoplodon densirostris'' DD *****
True's beaked whale True's beaked whale (''Mesoplodon mirus'') is a medium-sized whale in the genus ''Mesoplodon''. It is native to the northern Atlantic Ocean. The common name is in reference to Frederick W. True, a curator at the United States National Museum (no ...
, ''Mesoplodon mirus'' DD ****Genus: '' Ziphius'' *****
Cuvier's beaked whale The Cuvier's beaked whale, goose-beaked whale, or ziphius (''Ziphius cavirostris'') is the most widely distributed of all beaked whales in the family Ziphiidae. It is smaller than most baleen whales yet large among beaked whales. Cuvier's beaked ...
, ''Ziphius cavirostris'' DD


Order: Carnivora (carnivorans)

There are over 260 species of carnivorans, the majority of which feed primarily on meat. They have a characteristic skull shape and dentition. *Suborder: Caniformia **Family: Procyonidae (raccoons) ***Genus: ''
Procyon Procyon () is the brightest star in the constellation of Canis Minor and usually the eighth-brightest star in the night sky, with an apparent visual magnitude of 0.34. It has the Bayer designation α Canis Minoris, which is Latinized ...
'' ****
Raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...
, ''P. lotor'' introduced *****
Bahamian raccoon The Bahamian raccoon (''Procyon lotor maynardi''), also called Bahama raccoon or Bahamas raccoon, is a subspecies of the common raccoon endemic on the New Providence Island in the Bahamas. The binomial name, ''maynardi'', comes from Charles John ...
, ''P. l. maynardi'' introduced **Family: Phocidae (earless seals) ***Genus: '' Cystophora'' ****
Hooded seal The hooded seal (''Cystophora cristata'') is a large phocid found only in the central and western North Atlantic, ranging from Svalbard in the east to the Gulf of St. Lawrence in the west. The seals are typically silver-grey or white in color, w ...
, ''C. cristata'' vagrant ***Genus: '' Neomonachus'' **** Caribbean monk seal, ''N. tropicalis''


See also

* List of chordate orders * Lists of mammals by region *
List of prehistoric mammals This is an incomplete list of prehistoric mammals. It does not include extant mammals or recently extinct mammals. For extinct primate species, see: list of fossil primates.Mikko's Phylogeny Archiv Mammaliaformes ' *Genus †'' Adelobasileus ...
*
Mammal classification Mammalia is a class of animal within the phylum Chordata. Mammal classification has been through several iterations since Carl Linnaeus initially defined the class. No classification system is universally accepted; McKenna & Bell (1997) and Wilso ...
*
List of mammals described in the 2000s Although the mammals are well studied in comparison to other animal groups, a number of new species are still being discovered. This list includes Extant taxon, extant mammal species discovered, formally named, or brought to public light in the ye ...


Notes


References

* * * {{Bahamas topics, state=uncollapsed
Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the ar ...
Mammals Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur o ...
*
Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the ar ...