A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
Overview
A man trades animals to a parrot, whose concealed customer is the bat king. His companion disregards the warning against looking upward and sees the predator hanging upside down with exposed teeth. Their attempt to camp farther away fails. The bat waits for sleep, eats the companion's leg, and later returns for him after the trader departs.
The published tale presents a dangerous bargain and a prohibition whose breach makes the hidden threat visible. Its parrot is an intermediary rather than an alternative bat form. This reading keeps the relationship among the characters clear without inventing an army of bats, a cave palace or an encounter with Maya Camazotz.
Origins & earliest records
Enrique Margery Peña recorded Francisco Rodríguez Atencio in September–October 1989. The narrator came from San Félix, Chiriquí, and later lived in Coto Brus. This is a dated public collection, not the bat king's first telling. The modern journal metadata's 2015 posting and mistaken author forename differ from the printed article.
Records & interpretation
The original article's printed pp. 51–55 were read through direct PDF extraction, including the source account and complete Spanish narrative. It prints Enrique Margery Peña and the year 1989. Bocotá transcription and interlinear translation accompany the retelling; pronunciation and current community interpretation have not been independently checked here.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Cuatro relatos mitológicos bocotás de los yé nansére ('seres malos')
Revista de Filología y Lingüística 15(2):51–74; bat narrative on p. 55.
Family & connections
A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Primary textUCR: Margery Peña, Cuatro relatos mitológicos bocotás (1989), pp. 51–55Research access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
