Night Flyers
Whoooo Is In Your Backyard?
- Time of Year
- October 18, 2025 – June 28, 2026
- Location
- Level 2
Owls rule the night with silent wings and piercing eyes. Hidden in the shadows, they watch and wait, using their powerful vision and hearing to hunt in darkness. These secretive hunters live in forests, grasslands, and even city parks, but they’re not always easy to spot.
Owls play a key role in nature by keeping rodent populations under control. We often think of owls as active only at night (nocturnal). That's true for some kinds of owls, but others are active during the day (diurnal) or even active at dawn and dusk (crepuscular). They can adapt their behavior to different ecosystems and prey activity. In this exhibit, you’ll uncover the secrets of these mysterious birds: how they survive, what makes them skilled hunters, which species live nearby, and what we can do to protect their populations.
Access to this exhibit is included with Museum admission.
Keep Exploring
Natural history collections play an important role in how we understand the world around us. Preserved specimens from the past continue to teach us valuable lessons today, while making it easier to learn about animals that are more difficult for us to see in everyday life. Click below to learn more about natural history collections. Then read about extinct animals, like the passenger pigeon, and how we continue to learn valuable lessons from long-gone species and natural history collections.
Our scientific collections date back to our founding in 1857 and have been used to help define human understanding of nature, ecology, and the diversity of life in the United States.
Natural history collections, like the collections of the Chicago Academy of Sciences, can help us gain a greater understanding of biodiversity over long periods of time.
Lessons from the past for a sustainable future.