2026 Owl Prowl

🦉 2026 Owl Prowl 🦉

📅 Friday, December 11 at 5 PM through Saturday, December 12 at noon

📍 ONSC Main Campus, Huntsville, AR

🎟️ Early bird $100 through November 15, $120 after. Includes dinner, dorm lodging, and breakfast.

In case of severe winter weather, the backup date is December 18 to 19. Registered guests will be notified.

A Restorative Winter Overnight with Owls

Spend a winter night at Ozark Natural Science Center learning the science of owls with Dr. Emily Warman and the team from Northsong Wild Bird Rehabilitation. This year's Owl Prowl is hands-on and lab focused. You'll meet Arkansas's resident owl species and learn their calls, help interpret recordings captured overnight by autonomous recording units, explore owl anatomy and physiology, and finish with a feather and owl pellet lab.

Between sessions, recharge with optional morning yoga, a guided forest hike, and nourishing, wholesome meals.

Schedule

🌙 Friday, December 11: Owls After Dark

• 5:00 PM: Arrival and check-in. Get settled and meet the ONSC and Northsong teams.

• 5:30 to 6:30 PM: Dinner and welcome.

• 6:30 to 7:30 PM: Raptor Introduction: Conservation and Taxonomy. The diversity of raptors, how they're related, their conservation status, and the role they play in our ecosystems.

• 7:30 to 8:30 PM: Arkansas Owls: Identification and Bioacoustics. Meet our resident owl species and learn how biologists use sound and autonomous recording units to detect wildlife.

• 8:30 to 9:30 PM: Owl Bioacoustics Lab. Practice recognizing owl calls and reading acoustic recordings so you're ready to analyze the overnight data.

🌅 Saturday, December 12

• Early morning: Optional morning yoga or guided forest hike with ONSC staff.

• 8:00 to 9:00 AM: Breakfast.

• 9:00 to 10:00 AM: Bioacoustics Data Review and Lab. See what the recorders captured overnight, identify the owls present, and explore where they may be establishing territories.

• 10:00 to 11:00 AM: Owl Anatomy and Physiology. The adaptations behind nocturnal hunting and how they shape survival and rehabilitation.

• 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM: Feather and Owl Pellet Lab. Identify owl feathers and their structure, then dissect owl pellets to discover what owls have been eating.

About Your Presenter

Dr. Emily Warman is a veterinarian with Northsong Wild Bird Rehabilitation. She and the Northsong team will lead the lectures and labs throughout the program.

Good to Know

• Your ticket includes Friday dinner, dorm lodging Friday night, Saturday breakfast, and all programming.

• Adults only, with exceptions for mature teens with a strong interest in wildlife. Email info@onsc.us to ask.

• Your registration supports Northsong Wild Bird Rehabilitation and research and education at ONSC.

• Dress warmly in layers for winter weather and time outdoors.

• Some ONSC trails are rocky and steep, and there is a 3-minute walk from the parking lot to the Ewing Event Center. If you need accessible parking or other accommodations, please let us know.

• ONSC accepts EFA funds. Email info@onsc.us for an invoice for EFA Direct Pay to submit through ClassWallet.

About Ozark Natural Science Center

Ozark Natural Science Center is part of the 14,500-acre McIlroy Madison County Wildlife Management Area, with an 89-acre Main Campus and 8 miles of trails in Huntsville, AR. Since 1990, ONSC has helped people connect with nature through fun, hands-on science.

Our Mission: To strengthen the understanding, appreciation, and stewardship of land, water, and wildlife in the Ozarks.

Ticket Refund Policy

• Refunds up to 1 week before the event: Tickets are refundable minus any applicable fees (processing, administrative, etc.) until 7 days before the event.

• Refunds within 1 week of the event: For refund requests made less than 7 days prior to the event, a 50% refund will be given.

• No refunds within 24 hours of the event: Refund requests made within 24 hours of the event are not permitted, except in exceptional circumstances and only with approval from ONSC administration.

All refund requests must be submitted in writing to info@onsc.us. Refunds are processed within 7 to 10 business days.

Questions? Email info@onsc.us