CONTACT:
Dr. Jacques Veilleux: veilleuxj@franklinpierce.edu
Matthew Barone: baronem@franklinpierce.edu
Sandra Houghton, NHFG: (603) 271-5679
Jay Martin, NHFG: (603) 271-3211
October 11, 2018
RINDGE, NH — All ages of the public are invited to the New Hampshire Bat Festival on Saturday October 20th. Hosted by Franklin Pierce University on its Rindge, NH campus, the event will run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Spagnuolo Hall, and is free to attend.
Come meet live bats, participate in hands-on activities and demonstrations, and learn from bat biologists.
“We are very excited to share the fascinating biology of bats, introduce people to live specimens, and explain why bats are so important to our ecosystem,” says Jacques Veilleux a professor at Franklin Pierce University and bat conservationist.
The one-day festival will educate attendees through short presentations on species of bats living in New Hampshire, the beneficial contributions of bats to our environment, the crisis of bat population decline, and how the public can help Granite State bat populations to recover. Hands-on activity tables will acquaint people with bat house construction and placement, echolocation, bats and gardens, white-nose syndrome, and a live-bat demonstration will introduce the public to hoary and big brown bats.
The objective of the New Hampshire Bat Festival is to share a collective passion and concern for New Hampshire’s bats, and to help the public to better understand the species’ habits and significance in our state’s natural environment. New Hampshire is home to 8 species of bats, all of which are of conservation concern. Cave-hibernating bats in New Hampshire have been decimated by white-nose syndrome, and winter surveys of bat hibernacula have documented major population declines in recent years.
Biologist from Franklin Pierce University, Squam Lakes Nature Science Center, New Hampshire Fish and Game Department, US Forest Service, US Fish & Wildlife Service, New Hampshire Bat Project, and more will be at New Hampshire’s first Bat Festival.
Parking for the event will be in the DiGregorio Hall parking area off Mountain Road. A map is available to guide visitors to the event space at Spagnuolo Hall in the center of campus.
Learn more at: www.franklinpierce.edu/batfestival.
To learn more about bats in New Hampshire, visit www.wildnh.com/nongame.