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Aesop's Fables, translated by Laura Gibbs (2002)

364. THE BAT AND THE WEASELS
Perry 172 (Chambry 251 *)

A bat had fallen to the ground where a weasel grabbed her and was ready to kill her. The bat begged for mercy but the weasel refused, since weasels are the natural enemies of every kind of bird. The bat insisted that she was not a bird at all, but only a mouse, so the weasel let her go. Later on, the bat fell to the ground again and was seized by another weasel. The bat also begged this weasel not to kill her, but the weasel refused, since there was a war between the mice and the weasels. The bat denied that she was a mouse, but only a bat, so once again the weasel let her go. As a result, the bat was able to save herself twice by changing her name.
Clearly we must not always stick to the same course all the time since people who change with the times are often able to escape even the greatest dangers.

Note: For another fable about the war between the weasels and the mice, see Fable 455.

Source: Aesop's Fables. A new translation by Laura Gibbs. Oxford University Press (World's Classics): Oxford, 2002.
NOTE: New cover, with new ISBN, published in 2008; contents of book unchanged.