They're known for their nocturnal tendencies but one rogue bat in Tennessee appears to be an early riser after it made a surprise on-air appearance on a local morning show.

The bat began swooping around the 6 News studios on early Wednesday morning, unsettling the hosts during their live broadcast.

The news station WATE reports the bat dive bombed the show’s anchors Bo Williams, Tearsa Smith and meteorologist Julya Johnson. The trio called on a crew member by the name of Wayne (not to be confused with Bruce Wayne of Batman fame) to come to the rescue.

"Out of nowhere the bat comes about this far from my face," said Ms Smith. "It dive bombed us and you could literally hear me screaming because we're on TV and I get that and it's a newscast, but I was gone!"

WATE employees, as well as the group Vermin Busters, were able to remove the bat from the building just before noon.

The news station confirmed that the bat was released into a wooded area.