Back to the batcave!

Scientists studied Bulgarian greater mouse-eared bats to determine what other senses they use in long-range navigation. Bats, natural pest controllers, are in decline across Europe. - Wikimedia Commons/C. Robiller/www.naturlichter.de

Wholly internal compass, Batman – a European bat type can use the scatter patterns of sunlight to programme its internal compass for hunting after dark, the first mammal known to do so, researchers said last week.

The only flying mammals, bats use echolocation, a form of sonar, to find their way around, but this only works at distances up to about 50m.