The holotype had been collected in the US state of Georgia by American naturalist John Eatton Le Conte.[2] In 1897, American zoologist Gerrit Smith Miller placed it in the genus Pipistrellus for the first time as a result of its physical similarities to other members of the genus.[3] Its common name was thus the "eastern pipistrelle".[4] In 1984 its status was reviewed, with H. Menu concluding that it was more similar in appearance to species in the genus Myotis rather than Pipistrellus, erecting a new genus for the taxon: Perimyotis. The name "Perimyotis" means "around Myotis", alluding to its similarities with the genus.[5] This classification was not immediately accepted, however, with a 1985 study instead grouping it and the canyon bat into the genus Parastrellus and a 1987 publication maintaining that the tricolored bat was part of the Pipistrellus genus, though they listed Perimyotis as one of seven subgenera.