Dracula Hitches a Ride to The International Space Station?

Check it out. This is an image of the space shuttle Discovery as it began it's lift-off this past Sunday night, en route to the International Space Station.

NASA scientists had noticed that prior to launch, a Mexican Free-tailed Bat had decided to land for a rest on the orange insulation foam which covers the external fuel tanks.

The good people at NASA. . .

brought in a wildlife expert to look at video images of it. The expert said it appeared to be a free-tailed bat that probably had a broken left wing and an injured right shoulder or wrist. - ( CNN.com )

Since The Kennedy Space Center is so close to the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, sirens are in place which blast before any lift-off, to try and scare off any wildlife, and they usually work, but since this bat was apparently injured, he just clung to the foam and lifted off with the shuttle Discovery. Here is the complete story from CNN.
The shuttle safely docked with the I.S.S. on Tuesday, but the bat was likely jettisoned along with the large external fuel tank, before the shuttle Discovery reached orbit. If one has to go, it may as well be flying at tens of thousands of miles an hour, screaming into outer space!