Which came first: the vampire bat or the vampire cryptid? According to Dr. Gerry Carter, the cryptid is a cheap imitation of the real flesh-and-blood bat although the animal was technically named after the mythical creature. In this episode, among other things, we talk about Gerry's fascinating introduction to the bat world, the serendipity of two apparently disparate passions joining together, why organisms do things that benefit others at all, and what it takes to start and run a lab. Follow Gerry on Twitter https://twitter.com/gerrygcarter and go to his website https://socialbat.org for a ton of fascinating articles, blogs, and photos/videos. Visit the Give Bats A Break Linktree https://linktr.ee/GiveBatsABreak to find ALL of the GBAB and GBAP links, including to Apple Podcasts and Podchaser where you can leave a rating and a review! Let me know what you like, what you'd like to hear, and what you think of the show. Or shoot me an email at [email protected]. If you dig the song at the intro and outro, it is appropriately named "Bats" and it is by my friend and music producer MNPHST, who you can find on Soundcloud https://soundcloud.com/maniphest-1. Thanks for putting the podcast in your bat caves! I'm looking forward to the next time we get to Give Bats A Podcast together 🦇🎙