Gary F. McCracken is a professor in the Department of Zoology and the Graduate Programs in Ecology and Ethology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He has studied bats for many years and is author of the entry on bats in The Encyclopedia of American Folklore and Superstition. This folk theme reflects the common confusion over where bats belong in the scheme of nature. Bats not only fly like birds, they also have teeth like mammals. This combination made them special and formidable game players in many folk tales where the agile bat won the day.
Many legends have their roots in the actual physical features of bats.
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