Explorer Classroom

Barn Owls on the Hunt

When

Sep 24, 2026, 10 AM or 2 PM / ET

Grade / Age

3 - 8 / 8 - 14

Price

Free

Explorer Classroom is a live, interactive online event featuring National Geographic Explorers.

Learn how Karen Gallardo Cruz uses GPS to track the hunting habits of the American barn owl–and the impacts of human noise.

What's Included In This Free Event

Interactive session with Q&A
Student worksheet
Access to event recording

Credit: Bryant Aardema-bryants wildlife images/Getty Images

About This Event

Whoooooo’s making that noise? In the second event of the Wildlife Series, meet Karen Gallardo Cruz, an ecologist who studies how animal behavior might change due to human disturbance. Follow Karen into the California farmland as she tracks the hunting patterns of the American barn owl. Do they choose their hunting habitat based on how quiet or how loud it is? Join to find out!

Activity: After the event, guide your students through the second mission, “My Wildlife Map.” Students will place wildlife sightings on a map, to visualize where wildlife may be active around their own community.

Resources

Explorer Mindset Learning Framework

Featured Explorer

National Geographic Explorers are an international community of changemakers, who use the power of science, exploration, education and storytelling to illuminate and protect the wonder of our world, while inspiring the next generation to do the same.

Explorer Since 2026

Karen Gallardo Cruz

Ecologist

Karen Gallardo Cruz is an ecologist and a PhD candidate at UC Davis, in the department of Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology.

Other Explorer Classroom Events

Explorer Classroom

Series

Wildlife Series 2026

Christopher John Schell, Karen Gallardo Cruz, Vishal Subramanyan

An interactive multi-week program with live virtual events and activities designed for your students to learn about wildlife globally, while inspiring action locally.

5 sessions