When the cat’s away, the bats will play

Halloween decor is full of black cats and bats side-by-side, poised with backs arched and wings spread to deliver seasonal frights. In daily life, cats and bats are less partners-in-crime and much more predator-and-prey. With cats long cast as the witch’s familiar and bats as Dracula-in-disguise, a fictional spooky showdown of cat versus bat might be hard to call. Real-world studies tip the scary scales in felines’ favour.