In August 1995, professor Maeda from Nara University of Education organized the first bat festival in Norikura highland, Nagano prefecture. The festival was held on August 5 and 6 and attracted bat lovers across the nation and everybody enjoyed the evening bat observation. Back in 1989, professor Maeda discovered the Japanese Northern Bat Eptesicus japonensis and identified Norikura as a breeding ground. In 1990 some researchers began a study of this bat Eptesicus japonensis. Unfortunately, in 1991 the owner of the inn where the bats were roosting announced their intention to renovate, consequently an organization dedicated to the preservation of the Japanese Northern Bats was established in 1995 and this organization and the Bat Study and Conservation group of Japan have been cooperated to preserve these bats. In 1996 the organization received the private funding and were able to build a bat house and relocate the Japanese Northern Bats. This is the second bat house in Japan. To commemorate this event, the second bat festival was held in Norikura on August 3 and 4 that year.
Since then, bat festivals have been held across Japan every summer with the collaboration of local government, local conservation groups, museums and zoological gardens. These bat festivals include exhibitions which use photos, lectures, private collections and games to illustrate the habits of bats and the importance of their role in the ecosystem. There are also demonstrations of how to build a bat box so people can encourage the preservation of bats in their neighborhood.
The 3rd bat festival was held in Temmabayasi in Aomori on August 9 and 10, 1997. Temmabayashi is the first place to set up a bat house and successfully relocate a colony of the Asian Parti-colored Bat Vespertilio superans.
The 4th bat festival was held in Simokitayama in Nara prefecture on April
29 and 30, 1998.
The 5th in Bihoro in Hokkaido on July 31 and August 1, 1999.
The 6th at Asa Zoological Park in Hiroshima on July 8 and 9, 2000 where a high school hosts a colony of the Asian Free-tailed Bat Tadarida insignis. The festival was held there to encourage
the conservation activity of the Asian Free-tailed
Bats. Until recently Asian Free-tailed Bats had
not been reported in Japan but in 1996 the
first colony of 33 individuals of the Asian
Free-tailed Bats was discovered in an uninhabited
island in Kyushu. The colony in the high school in Hiroshima
holds more than 400 individuals and it is
one of the largest colonies of the species
in Japan. The bats breed and hibernate there. When the school building had to be rebuilt,
the school agreed to ensure the places for
the bats in the new building. But unfortunately, most Asian free-tailed bats left the venue.
The 7th bat festival was held in Sun Park Land Miyama limestone cave in Gifu prefecture on August 25 and 26, 2001, which hosts Greater Horseshoe Bats. The cave is unique because it is a tourist destination and anyone can access the bat colony. They are planning to change the cave from a sight-seeing destination into a centre for eco-tourism.
The 8th bat festival was held at the foot of Mt. Fuji on August 24 and 25, 2002 where there are a large number of natural caves along with forests, ideal for bat habitation.
The 9th bat festival was held at Ueno Zoo on August 2 and 3, 2003. As the exhibition had been held for three month and the zoo is eminent and located in central Tokyo, some 20,000 people visited the exhibition.
The 10th bat festival was held at Kashiwazaki Museum in Niigata prefecture
on July 31 and August 1, 2004.
The 11th bat festival was held in Rakan highland in Yamaguchi Prefecture
which is next to one of the largest limestone cave and karst in Japan on
August 20 and 21, 2005. The Akiyosidai near there has one of the
largest cave in Asia and a home to more than
15,000 bats of six species.
The 12th bat festival was held at Tadami in Fukushima on August 26 and
27, 2006.
The 13th bat festival was held in Norikura highland in Nagano Prefecture
again on July 21 and 22, 2007.
The 14th bat festival was held in Okinawa Kids Discovery Kingdom on August
2 and 3, 2008. Okinawa is a habitat for Ryukyu flying foxes. The zoo we had the bat festival
keep Ryukyu flying foxes inside of a cage and the funny thing is that a
wild bat was also hanging outside of the cage.
The 15th bat festival was held in Amihari Onsen in Iwate prefecture on
August 29 and 30, 2009.
The16th bat festival was held in Tsuruoka city in Yamagata prefecture on
August 28 and 29, 2010.
The 17th bat festival was held in Kushigatayama in Yamanashi Prefecture
on July 17 and 18, 2011.
The 18th bat festival was held in Karuizawa in Nagano prefecture on September
1st and 2nd, 2012
The 19th bat festival was held in Ozora-cho, Hokkaido on July 13th and
14th, 2013
The 20th bat festival was held in Forest Park Adatara in Fukushima on August
23rd and 24th, 2014
The 21st bat festival was held in Taiwan on June 27 and 28, 2015 with the collaboration of Bat Association of Taiwan and Formosan Golden Bat's Home. This is the first festival ever held outside of Japan.
The 22nd bat festival was held in Tengu Highland stretching over Ehime
Prefecture and Kochi Prefecture September 10 and 11, 2016.
The 23rd bat festival was held in Shichinohe Town (formerly known as Tenmabayashi-mura)
near the bat house at Tenmadate shrine which house a large maternity roost
of Vespertilio sinensis in Aomori Prefecture on August 5 and 6, 2017.
The 24th Bat Festival was held at Mie Prefectural Museum "MieMu"
on October 20(Sat), 2018.
The 25th Bat Festival was held at The Shimane Nature Museum of Mt. Sanbe
“Sahimel” on October 12 and 13,2019.
Bat festivals in 2020 and 2021 were cancelled due to the prevailing Covid-19
situation.
The 26th Bat Festival was held at Norikura Highland in Nagano Prefecture
again on 9th and 10th July, 2022.
The 27th Bat Festival was held at Sapporo Maruyama Zoo in Sapporo City
in Hokkaido on 26th and 27 August, 2023.
