[2] It very closely resembles the chestnut short-tailed bat, and the two species are likely often confused.

The holotype had been collected in 1983, 2 km (1.2 mi) to the south of Tingo María, Peru.

[3] The eponym for the species name "benkeithi" was Ben E. Keith, who donated $5 million to Texas Tech University.

[3] Based on stable isotope analysis, it likely consumes a considerable amount of insects in addition to plant material such as fruit.

[5] Benkeith's short-tailed bat is found in northeastern Bolivia, eastern Peru, and western Brazil.