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Families flap to Cincinnati Museum Center October 29 for BatFest

CINCINNATI – Did you know that there are more than 1,100 species of bats? Did you know that bats live on every continent except for Antarctica? And did you know that bats are the only mammals that can fly? We could tell you more, but that would ruin the fun. Instead, you’re invited to join us Saturday, October 29 for our annual BatFest celebration!

Learn more about one of earth’s most misunderstood creatures with demonstrations, activities and conversations with the experts. We’ll prove to you that bats aren’t so scary after all. Actually, bats are a very important part of our ecosystem; pollinating fruit and providing insect control. The entire day is full of great programming the whole family will enjoy. Watch members of the Greater Cincinnati Grotto scale 106 feet to the top of Union Terminal’s Rotunda, march through the museums in the costume parade and more!

Activities are free for Museum Center Members or with the purchase of an All Museums Pass for $12.50. Check out the full list of BatFest events below and cincymuseum.org for more details.

BatFest Market:

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Kisses From LaLa Land – Jewelry and other fun items with a bat flair created from recycled materials.

11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Artistic Bat Boomerangs by Greg Courtney – Experience one of the largest hand-crafted, “true returning” bat boomerang collections in the world! Join Mr. Courtney outside for bat boomerang demonstrations, weather permitting.

Rotunda Activities:

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Greater Cincinnati Grotto – Watch local grotto members demonstrate skillful rope techniques to scale 106 feet to the top of Union Terminal’s Rotunda! Learn about cave ecology from the experts!

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Cincinnati Park Board – How do you compare to a bat? Test your comBATible skills with hands-on activities to discover the similarities and differences between humans and bats.

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Division – Pick up the latest publications to see what’s happening in the world of local wildlife found in your backyard.

1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Costume Making – Forgot your costume? Don’t worry! Stop by and create a one–of-a-kind costume to showcase in the Costume Parade.

2:30 p.m. Costume Parade – Meet in front of Store to Explore to show off your spooky threads and parade through all three museums.

Museum of Natural History & Science Activities:

10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Bat Flight – Ask our bat specialists questions as you watch our Big Brown Bats take flight in this 30-minute program. Bat Flight starts at the beginning of every hour next to the entrance of The Cave.

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. ECHO Bats, Inc. – See live bats up close and enjoy bat activities to learn the important role of bats in our ecosystem.

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Cave – Explore 500 feet of dark passages in one of the world’s largest artificial limestone caves!

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Bat Faces from Around the World – Walk like a bat! Fly like a bat! Explore echolocation with bat ears to experience what it’s like to hear like a bat. Learn about these amazing yet misunderstood animals through a slide presentation of various bats from around the world. Touch a flying fox skull, learn a baby bat game, look at a bat skeleton and more with our Program on Wheels team!

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Are You as Smart as a Bat? – Test your knowledge of flight and sense of smell and hearing to solve hands-on challenges and bat activities in the new LITE Lab!

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Scavenger Hunt – Flap into fun with our BatFest Scavenger Hunt earning Nature’s Trading Post points.

11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Fruit Tasting – Did you know bats pollinate foods that we eat every day? Sample a variety of fruits from around the world pollinated by bats!

1 to 4 p.m Get your Ph.D. in bats with Dr. Mays – Meet with Herman Mays, Ph.D., curator of zoology at Cincinnati Museum Center to examine preserved bats from around the world in our zoology collection!

2 to 2:45 p.m. Aventuras in el Museo! – Grab a puppet and join in the fun to tell the story of Stellaluna as it’s read in Spanish.

2 to 4 p.m. Batty Brain – Test your bat I.Q. in our new LITE Lab with a twist on the classic game of Jeopardy.

Duke Energy Children’s Museum Activities:

11:30 a.m. Animals Up Close: Bats – Come meet, touch, observe and ask questions about one of our live animals in Animal Spot.

1 p.m. Budding Scientists: Bats are Handy – Love Bats? So do we! Discover how bats are handy to have hanging around, and make one to hang at home!

Thank you to the following organizations for their continued support of BatFest: Artistic Bat Boomerangs by Greg Courtney; Cincinnati Park Board; EchoBats, Inc.; Greater Cincinnati Grotto; Kisses from LaLa Land; Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Division

BatFest 2011 sponsored by The Kenneth A. Scott Charitable Trust, a KeyBank Trust.

About Cincinnati Museum Center
Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal is a nationally recognized institution as well as national historic landmark. Dedicated to sparking community dialogue, insight and inspiration, Museum Center was awarded the 2009 National Medal for Museum and Library Service. Our Union Terminal has been voted the nation’s 45th most important building by the American Institute of Architects. Organizations within Cincinnati Museum Center include the Cincinnati History Museum, Duke Energy Children’s Museum, the Museum of Natural History & Science, the Robert D. Lindner Family OMNIMAX® Theater and the Cincinnati Historical Society Library. Recognized by Forbes Traveler Magazine as the 17th most visited museum in the country, Cincinnati Museum Center welcomes one million plus visitors annually. Cincinnati Museum Center gratefully acknowledges operating and capital support from the taxpayers of Hamilton County and the State of Ohio. For more information, visit www.cincymuseum.org.

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