Homestead, FL– Mermaids, jealous queens and lost cities will all be a part of the next Family Fun Fest at Biscayne National Park on January 8, 2012. “Poseidon and Pals” will highlight stories from around the world that explain marine phenomena like tides and sea foam. The free event takes place from 1-4 pm at the park’s Dante Fascell Visitor Center, 9 miles east of Homestead. Free bus transportation will be provided from Florida City
City Hall and from the Homestead YMCA.

Family Fun Fest participants receive a passport that will guide them through five hands-on  and engaging activity stations located around the visitor center. Stations include:

• Medusa – Get up close and personal with an upside-down jelly, and discover why they’re upside-down!
• Aphrodite – Venus’ Greek alter-ego was born of the sea foam, but what’s really behind that “ocean, white with foam?”
• Atlantis – Does the mysterious lost city under the sea really exist?
• OMGs! – Diana, Thor and Charybdis all have their own explanation for what causes the tides, but who’s telling the truth?
• Trail of the Mermaid – She’s left her purse, her wineglass…who knew that mermaid’s could be so disorganized?

Participants who complete the activities will earn a specially-designed button to remember the day. Earning all five buttons in a season earns a Family Fun Fest Fanatic award in April. Fans of the park’s Facebook page will also receive a clue to a special “Bonus Station” on the Facebook page on Sunday morning.

Future Family Fun Fests are:

• Animal Superpowers – February 12, 2012 – get the real stories behind the   superpowers of some of Biscayne’s animals
• Biscayne Wrecktacular! – March 11, 2012 – Discover the mysteries of the deep from 5 wrecks along the park’s Maritime Heritage Trail.
• Skeleton Crew – April 15, 2012 (A WEEK LATER THAN USUAL DUE TO EASTER) – Take a look inside all kinds of critters, from corals and fish to manatees and dolphins.

Free bus transportation, made possible by the event’s sponsors, will be available from Florida City and Homestead; call 305-230-1144, x007 for details.

Family Fun Fest’s Season 12: Myth, Magic and Mystery is made possible through a generous grant from the Captain Bob Lewis Billfish Challenge and the Bobby Duryea Fund at the South Florida National Parks Trust, with additional support from the Biscayne Bay Aquatic Preserves and a host of dedicated volunteers.

The Dante Fascell Visitor Center is located at 9700 SW 328 Street, nine miles east of Homestead, Florida. Call 305-230-7275, extension 0 or visit the park’s website at www.nps.gov/bisc for more information. For regular updates from the park, “like” us on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/BiscayneNPS and “follow” us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/BiscayneNPS.