Of mice and bats

Scientists have created mice with abnormally long forelimbs by outfitting the rodents with a chunk of DNA that directs wing development in bats, according to Technology Review.

The slightly longer forelimbs of the transgenic mice do make them more batlike. But the mice won't be flying out of the cage, says one of the scientists. First mice would have to develop very different forelimbs, like those of bats, which are longer and have membranes stretched between the bones. So we shouldn't see Mighty Mouse anytime soon.

Are winged swine on the horizon? That would give new meaning to the saying, "When pigs fly."