[2] Its species name "phrudus" comes from Ancient Greek "phroudos," meaning "gone" or "disappeared."

Handley chose this name "with allusion to their type locality, the 'Lost City' of Machu Picchu..."[2] Along with Kalinowski's mastiff bat, it is one of only two species of Mormopterus in the New World.

[3] Its ears are thin, rounded, and not conjoined as in some other free-tailed bats.

[3] This bat is endemic to Peru, where it is known only from one location; its type locality is Machu Picchu.

It is considered a vulnerable species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and a critically endangered species by the nation of Peru; though it is rare, it lives in a protected area.