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Close Encounters with Wildlife-Featuring Mary Roach and her new book Fuzz
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Friday, September 2
6 p.m. – 10 p.m.
$15 adults, $10 kids/seniors and $5 members
Join our fun and informative family event, where you can learn about local wildlife, meet live animals and learn about how they’ve adapted to our changing local environment. Meet experts who specialize in animal rescue, and help to rebuild local animal habitats.
Featuring
Mary Roach’s latest book “Fuzz” explores the curious science of human-wildlife conflict, a discipline at the crossroads of human behavior and wildlife biology. Chabot Space & Science Center and A Great Good Place For Books welcome Mary Roach for a (limited capacity) talk plus a book signing. Throughout the Center watch the chapters of “Fuzz” come to life and meet and learn about some of the animals that “break the law” for one night only!
First Fridays at Chabot Space & Science Center bring the Oakland community together to play and discover, highlight diverse voices in S.T.E.A.M. and inspire explorers of all ages.
Chabot’s First Friday opens the doors for discovery with planetarium shows, telescope viewings and after-hours access to exhibits. Embedded in Redwood Regional Park, the Center is a space for our community to get together, learn, and explore in Oakland’s backyard.
First Friday features a new theme supported by community partners, hands-on activities, workshops, performances, and speakers. With different opportunities every month, the possibilities are endless: Talk to an astronaut. Shake hands with a dinosaur. Practice your pitching with the Oakland A’s and more!
Schedule
7 PM, A Great Good Place for Books welcomes Mary Roach in conversation with Jennifer Frazier. “A Conversation about Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law”, The Theater. Seating is limited and a general admission ticket does not guarantee entry
Join “America’s funniest science writer” Mary Roach, on an irresistible investigation into the unpredictable world where wildlife and humans meet. Mary Roach joins host and interviewer Jennifer Frazier, PhD in conversation about Mary’s latest book “Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law”. After the talk concludes please join us in the Chabot Rotunda lobby for a book signing with Mary Roach, welcomed by A Great Good Place for Books.
Mary Roach is the author of the New York Times bestsellers STIFF, SPOOK, BONK, GULP, GRUNT, and PACKING FOR MARS. Her new book FUZZ: When Nature Breaks the Law, debuted in September 2021.
Jennifer Frazier is the Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives at the Science Communication Lab, a non-profit fostering public understanding of science through film. For eighteen years Jennifer was a Senior Scientist and Curator at the Exploratorium, where she co-led the museum’s program in biological sciences.
A Great Good Place for Books is a full-service bookstore in the Montclair Village neighborhood of Oakland, California
8-9PM, A Great Good Place for Books welcomes a book signing with Mary Roach, Rotunda
Mary Roach will be available to sign books on a first come, first served basis. We will also have her latest book Fuzz for sale courtesy of A Great Good Place for Books.
Mary Roach is the author of the New York Times bestsellers STIFF, SPOOK, BONK, GULP, GRUNT, and PACKING FOR MARS. Her new book FUZZ: When Nature Breaks the Law, debuted in September 2021.
A Great Good Place for Books is a full-service bookstore in the Montclair Village neighborhood of Oakland, California
8 PM, Justin Dellinger, The mission of the California Mountain Lion Project, Studio 3
Join Dr. Justin Dellinger, the lead of the UC Davis California Mountain Lion Project for an overview of mountain lion management and conservation issues statewide with local emphasis.
Dr. Dellinger is originally from western North Carolina and grew up in the Appalachian Mountains. He conducted research on red wolf foraging and spatial ecology and gray wolf-prey interactions as part of different graduate programs. He has also worked as a biologist for different tribes doing mountain lion and gray wolf work. More recently, he worked for the California Department of Fish & Wildlife for just over 6 years, where he served as a large carnivore researcher.
6-9PM, California Mountain Lion Project, Studio 3
Learn more from the team at California Mountain Lion Project with some one-on-one Q&A with lion researchers.
Currently led by Dr. Justin Dellinger, the California Mountain Lion Project has worked with mountain lions in Southern California since 2001, with particular focus on habitat use, prey animals, health and disease, and human interaction. By placing GPS collars on the mountain lions, the project can track movements and behavior, as well as document habitat use. This information is gathered to identify potential conflict points in shared habitats to help prevent tragedies for humans, pets, and wildlife — this information is then shared to help educate the public on the importance of mountain lions to the ecosystem and what can be done to prevent their decline in the state.
6-9PM, East Bay Regional Park District, Mammals of California, Studio 3
Meet the mammals of California with a Naturalist from East Bay Regional Parks. Bones, furs, and more await you on your macabre adventure!
The East Bay Regional Park District is a system of beautiful parklands in Alameda and Contra Costa counties to the east of San Francisco. The system comprises 73 parks spanning across 125,000 acres; 1,250 miles of trails; 55 miles of shoreline. We manage and preserve natural and cultural resources for all to enjoy and protect. The regional parks are ideal for healthful recreation and environmental education.
6-9 PM, Golden Gate Audubon Society, Studio 3
Golden Gate Audubon Society is dedicated to protecting Bay Area birds, other wildlife, and their natural habitats. We conserve and restore wildlife habitats, connect people of all ages and backgrounds with the natural world, and educate and engage Bay Area residents in the protection of our shared, local environment. Come by and learn about birds and their habitats, and how to experience wildlife through birding.
6–9PM, Native Bird Connections, Meet a live Peregrine Falcon and a Swainson’s Hawk, Studio 3
Learn the stories of these two individuals and of their species, definite survivors of serious human/wildlife conflict. Visitors will have the opportunity to meet these raptors face to face along with taxidermy and artifacts of interest.
Native Bird Connections is a local nonprofit dedicated to stellar interpretive programming with live raptors as partners. We specialize in outreach programs for audiences of all ages within Northern California. We invite you to come and meet two of our non-releasable birds of prey, a Peregrine Falcon and a Swainson’s hawk. Both individuals have met unfortunate circumstances in the wild rendering them unable to survive outside of captivity.
Swainson’s Hawk, Peregrine Falcon
6-9PM, Oakland Zoo, Studio 3
Get up close to a few of the zoo’s animal ambassadors, a gopher snake, tortoise and blue-tonged skink! These species are sometimes misunderstood, but they are an important part of our ecosystem. Zoo educators will also have a table full of bear biofacts and tips for living safely alongside these amazing animals!
The Oakland Zoo opened to the public on June 6, 1922 and is one of the city’s longest running institutions. They are a leader in animal welfare, rescue, and conservation. The zoo is home to over 850 individual animals ranging from leaf-cutter ants to African elephants! In addition to working with international conservation initiatives, the zoo also works with local organizations to help native wildlife through veterinary care, providing permanent homes, and education.
Oakland Zoo (@oaklandzoo) • Instagram photos and videos
6-9pm, True Wild “Co-existence with Predators”, Studio 3
True Wild will host a display with information on its mountain lion conservation and research work in the San Francisco North Bay in partnership with Audubon Canyon Ranch’s Living with Lions Project. They will be able to answer questions on mountain lion behavior and ways to coexist with these enigmatic and important predators.
True Wild is a company that focuses on Research, Conservation, Local Nature Experiences and Safaris in its efforts to connect people to nature to improve their lives and contribute to the conservation of our planet and its wildlife. Join Quinton Martins, Ph.D., who is the Founding Partner of True Wild and the Principal Investigator of Audubon Canyon Ranch’s Living with Lions Project, a community conservation project centered around San Francisco’s North Bay’s Mountain lion population.
6-9PM, Galaxy Explorers “Cladistics”, Studio 1
The idea behind cladistics is that members of a group share a common evolutionary history, and are “closely related,” more so to members of the same group than to other organisms. These groups are recognized by sharing unique features which were not present in distant ancestors. Learn how we can identify these shared characteristics of creatures!
6-9PM, Bay Area Puma Project, Mezzanine
The goal of the Bay Area Puma Project is to create a space where humans and pumas can live together peacefully, and this is done by educating the public about local puma research. The more people know about pumas the more likely they are to live alongside them without fear or conflict.
Have you ever wondered what a puma’s skull looks like or how big of a footprint they leave behind? Do you know when pumas are most active or their favorite food? Stop by the Bay Area Puma Project table on the Mezzanine to discover more about this elusive Bay Area Predator!
Home | Bay Area Puma Project (bapp.org)
Planetarium Shows
6:30PM, Bay Aerial + Solar Quest
Take a supersonic spin around Bay Area skies! Bay Aerial is a ten-minute flight of fancy begins at our home port, Chabot, and covers a lot of ground–from the sky above: To Mount Diablo in the east, the Santa Cruz Mountains to the south, Point Reyes up north, and back home again across the East Bay.
SOLAR QUEST is a planetarium short feature that demonstrates and provides an overview of the Sun – Earth environment.
7:30PM, ZEISS ASTRONOMY PRESENTATION: THE SKY TONIGHT
Explore the cosmos as a Chabot Astronomer leads you through the galaxy using a Zeiss Universarium Mark VIII Star Projector.
9 PM Laser Vinyl
Enjoy the best of classic rock paired with stunning laser art. Tap your feet and enjoy a truly fantastic audiovisual event that will rock your body, mind, and soul —it makes reminiscing a full body experience!
Live Music:
6-8PM, Shannon Hayden, (solo cellist), Studio 1
Enjoy space-influenced music from Shannon Hayden.
Multi-instrumentalist Shannon Hayden has been traveling the world performing solo concerts and offering multi-instrumentalist work for folk pop group Lily and Madeleine as well as acclaimed world music artist SIMRIT. Her sound has been shaped through the world of classical music and a lifelong love for experimental soundscapes.
7:30PM, Krudwerk, Courtyard Amphitheater
Krudwerk is a punk rock / new wave group formed in Oakland in 2016. Originally students in the 3 O’clock Rock music program, they’ve played numerous shows throughout the Bay Area and beyond, including a recent tour of the Pacific Northwest. Their repertoire includes covers of the Buzzcocks, the Undertones, They Might Be Giants, and XTC, as well as several original songs. The band consists of Leo Kvoriak on drums and vocals, Charlie Kvoriak on bass, keyboards, and vocals, Zane Boyd on guitar and vocals, and Ben Rubin on guitar and bass.
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBx2g6AWvJTmxRT_pn1SdoQ
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/krudwerk/
