Participatory Science

Project Owlnet

Friday, Oct 25, 2019 - Tuesday, Nov 26, 2019 6:30pm - 12:15am
Event Location
Reed Education Center
Advance Registration Required
Yes

Event Details

The Smithsonian Environmental Research Center is hosting a Project Owlnet site, part of a network of sites scattered throughout the US and Canada that track the migration and population changes of Northern Saw-whet Owls.

This is a VERY popular project. Please sign up for a MAXIMUM of 3 nights! We want to be able to offer the opportunity to as many people as possible.

Volunteers will assist with banding and measuring the owls. Volunteers will work from after sunset until approximately midnight. Volunteers ages 12+ are welcome (volunteers under the age of 16 must be accompanied by a participating adult). We can accommodate a maximum of 3 volunteers under the age of 16 per night. Please do not bring anyone with you that you don't include in the count for your party! Space is limited, so we are unable to accommodate extra people.

We prefer volunteers who can stay the whole time (until midnight). We may be able to accommodate volunteers who need to leave early. These decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis. Please contact me if you have any questions. As a note, the number of owls tends to increase throughout the evening, so those who leave early may be less likely to see owls.

Please note that you may or may not see any owls on a given night. We have no way to predict the number or timing of owls, so there may be nights with no owls and there may be nights with lots. We have no way to know ahead of time.

This activity is highly weather dependent. We will have to cancel if there is rain or if there is a small craft advisory. If we have to cancel, I will email everyone who has signed up by 4PM.

Sampling may be canceled due to weather. Sampling start times for each evening will shift somewhat as days get shorter and with the end of daylight savings time. Specific start times will be sent the week before the event.

Contact Alison Cawood at cawooda@si.edu for questions.