“Bats exhibit extraordinary flight capabilities that arise by virtue of a variety of unique mechanical features. These flying mammals have developed powerful muscles that provide the folding and extension of their wing-membrane during flight (morphing). Although observing and gaining inspiration from these animals can provide significant insight into the physical requirements of flapping flight, it remains an engineering challenge to develop equivalently effective morphing wing vehicles," explains a research paper about BaTboT.The U.S. military partially funded this research so watch out for flying death bats in the future. This news probably does not sit well for the chiroptophobic.
Source: http://www.disam.upm.es/~jdcolorado/BAT/Overview.html
