WESTPORT–Fall doesn’t just feature cooler weather, leaves changing colors and the start of the holiday season.

Residents can also celebrate fall at Earthplace, a longtime non-profit in Westport that’s hosting two events in October.

The Fall Festival, which will feature the reopening of Earthplace’s “Birds of Prey” exhibit, is scheduled from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Oct. 3, and the Woodside Bash will take place from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Oct. 17.

“It draws a really big crowd,” Nicole Grotheer, director of marketing and communications at Earthplace, said of the Fall Festival. “It can be anywhere between 1,100 and 1,500 people. That’s what we’ve seen in recent years.”

“It’s a great fall day for families to come and enjoy the nature center, and all the proceeds support a great cause,” she said.

While the reopening of the “Birds of Prey” exhibit, which was closed for renovations in December, is a highlight of the Fall Festival, many other events are scheduled as well.

A corn pool, in which kids jump into a pool of corn kernels, was “definitely a major draw of the Fall Festival” and “one of the activities the kids absolutely love,” Grotheer said.

Other events include pumpkin bowling; a tree weave, in which ropes attached between pine trees form a grid that kids can decorate with natural materials; arts and crafts; building a giant eagle’s nest; observing a rotten log hotel and its inhabitants; nature exploration; and encounters with animals that in the past included snakes, rabbits and lizards, Grotheer said.

Activity tickets can be purchased separately during the festival for hay rides, an apple slingshot, hay search and donut on a string in which kids have to grab a donut with their mouths.

The “Birds of Prey” exhibit now features expanded homes for Earthplace’s raptors, which include eagles, hawks, owls and turkey vultures, Grotheer said. The renovated exhibit also “creates a more engaging and accessible experience for visitors,” she said.

Tickets for the Fall Festival are $8 for adults and $12 for children. An explorer wristband, which includes one children’s ticket and unlimited access to all the festival’s paid activities for that child, can be purchased for $40. Tickets for the Fall Festival can be purchased at https://earthplace.org/festival/

Meanwhile, the Woodside Bash, open to people at least 21 years old, will include live music, a seasonal dinner and cocktails. In the past, 150 to 200 people attended the Woodside Bash, Grotheer said.

Tickets for the Woodside Bash are $150 but discounted to $125 through Labor Day. Tickets can be purchased at https://earthplace.org/bash/

“These events bring together everything that makes Earthplace special,” Amee Borys, executive director of Earthplace, said in a statement. “They celebrate our connection to nature while helping ensure that future generations can continue to learn, explore, and be inspired here.”

“We’re especially excited to welcome visitors back to our Birds of Prey exhibit after months of renovation and to share this important milestone with our community,” Borys said in the statement.

Earthplace, founded in 1958, is on 62 acres at 10 Woodside Lane. Its mission centers on environmental education, conservation, scientific research, and connecting people of all ages with the natural world.

For information, e-mail info@earthplace.org or call 203-557-4400.