The Ozark Natural Science Center (ONSC), located on the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission’s (ANHC) Bear Hollow Natural Area, hosted its first BioBlitz on Saturday, April 18. A bioblitz is an event where the biodiversity of an area is documented in a specific time period.

The ONSC BioBlitz included interpretive hikes focused on botany, stream ecology, insects, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and bats. Scientists and volunteers combed the ONSC trails for any living thing, documenting occurrences as close to the specific species as they were able to identify.

The all-day event featured family activities including nature crafts, a scavenger hunt, and a mini BioBlitz for children. Participants could visit stations with a discovery table; a microscope with pond water slides; hand lenses for studying tracks, feathers, turtle shells, furs, antlers, and skulls; and a rock hardness test.