Image courtesy of the ROM.

Attention GTA parents: The bat cave at the ROM has undergone a $300,000 rejuvenation, and some of the editors at CF are very excited!

The new bat cave boasts both animatronic technology and audiovisual learning tools.  This means that while the old bat cave, created in 1988, was both intriguing and scary, the new bat cave, which opened on February 27, offers visitors a more interactive and life-like experience.

Visitors can now watch video footage from the St. Clair Cave, the 3 km limestone grotto in Jamaica famous for its bat population and the inspiration for the 1,700 square-foot ROM gallery.

The videos depict several species of these dark, hairy, creepy-looking flying mammals.

They also debunk some of the myths commonly attached to bats (did you know that just three of 1,100 species feed on blood?  The other 1,097 species feed on vegetation and insects. Sorry Dracula—finding friends might have just become even harder).

In the heart of the cave, visitors will notice that the floor appears to be moving! Cockroaches, feeding on simulated guano (bat excrement) create a living carpet of creepy, crawly insects.  In order to emphasize the number of animals potentially living alongside bats, the new cave also features crickets, crabs, beetles and spiders.

As visitors reach the end of the cave, they will have peered into cracks and crevices looking for the cave’s more than 800 (300 more than the old cave had) creepy inhabitants.

When it comes down to it, we are sure visitors to the new bat cave will be thrilled as they impulsively duck under flapping wings (the results of new animatronic technology) and jump upon hearing the mammals eerie high-pitched squeaks.

AND, March is Bat Month at the ROM!  If you need something to occupy your children during the March Break, check out the list of special demonstrations and activities the ROM has prepared.

For more March Break ideas, check our our Best March Break Ideas Ever!