Owl Pellet-Introduction

Read the following out loud with your partner. Switch after each paragraph.

Owls, like most birds, are not able to chew their food. However, unlike other birds, they do not have an
organ called a crop, which is used to store swallowed food to be digested at a Iater time. Owls have a unique
way of ridding themselves of any parts of their prey that cannot be digested. The indigestible parts are expelled
from the owl's body in an owl pellet.

Owls generally swallow their prey, small rodents and anything else they can manage to catch, whole.
Their food travels directly from their mouth to their gizzard, an organ that uses sand particles, gravel, and
digestive fluids to grind and dissolve the parts of the prey that can be digested. After the fat, muscle, skin, and
internal organs have been broken down by the owl's gizzard and intestines, the owl is left with parts that cannot
be digested. The teeth, claws, bones, fur, and other indigestible parts of the owl's prey become an owl pellet.

In order to excrete these bones, fur, teeth, and other odds and ends of the prey, the material is compacted
in the owl's gizzard into a neat mass called an owl pellet. If multiple animals are eaten by the owl in a short
period of time, the owl pellet will contain remains of more than one animal. Baby owls do not make owl pellets
until they start eating their prey whole.

A few hours after eating, an owl's pellet is usually fully formed, but it usually remains in the body for at
least several hours more. The owl pellet is stored in a part of the owl's body known as the proventriculus for up
to 20 hours before it is ejected from the body. The owl cannot eat again until the owl pellet is disgorged, as it
blocks the digestive system's entrance.
 Regurgitating an owl pellet is not an attractive process. The owl appears to be coughing and in pain, but is
actually not hurt by the owl pellet. The esophagus begins to spasm, forcing the owl pellet out. These spasms
appear painful, but the pellet remains moist and soft until it is outside of the owl's body. The entire process of
regurgitation can last anywhere from just a few seconds to two or three minutes.

An owl pellet can provide important clues to how an owl lives. The bones of the owl's prey are generally
not broken in the process and can be quickly identified. An owl pellet will generally include a skull, making it
even easier to identify the specific type of prey.

The texture and shape of an owl pellet varies depending on the species of owl and the prey it has
consumed" Pellets can be tightly or loosely compacted, irregularly shaped or oval, furry or dry. Owl pellets are
generally found in locations where owls perch, such as under trees and under rafters in barns.
The Dissection
Materials Needed:
*Owl Pellet *Probe and Gloves
*Dissection Microscope (1 per table) *Paper Towel (to dissect on)
*Ruler *Bone Organization Chart (in sheet
protector) *Skull Packet
*Owl Pellet Bone Chart *Graph paper and Colored pencils

Instructions:
1. You will dissect with your shoulder partner. ​EACH PERSON MUST COMPLETE THEIR OWN DOCUMENT.
2. Measure the length and width of your pellet in centimeters.
Length:________ Width:________
3. Using your fingers and probe, ​carefully​ separate the bones and fur within the pellet. Make two piles: one with fur,
the other with bones. ​Note: the bones are small and will break very easily.
4. Organize your bones on the bone organization chart (in the sheet protector) with the help of the owl pellet bone
chart (packet). Determine if you have more than one animal present. Use the dissecting scope at your table to look
at
bones more closely.
5. Which animals do you think you have? Insert a picture of your bone
organization chart to the right.

Animal 1: __________________

Animal 2: __________________

Animal 3: __________________
 6. Measure the length of ALL skulls and lower jaw bones (madables) in millimeters.
Animal 1:
Skull: ​Length:____mm Width: ____mm

Lower Jaw: Length:____mm Width: ____mm

Animal 2:
Skull: ​Length:____mm Width: ____mm

Lower Jaw: Length:____mm Width: ____mm

Animal 3:
Skull: ​Length:____mm Width: ____mm

Lower Jaw: Length:____mm Width: ____mm

7. Use the skull packet to identify the type of animals you have based on ​size​ and ​morphology​.

Animal 1: __________________

Animal 2: __________________

Animal 3: __________________

8. Did the skull measurements support or refute your predictions from number 5? ​Answer in complete sentences.​
 9. Count the total number of each type of bone and record your results in the data table below. Have one partner record your
numbers on the board.

Name of Bones Number of Bones Class Average

Skull

Lower Jaw

Scapula (shoulder blade)

Forelimb

Hindlimb

Pelvic Bone

Rib

Vertebrae

10. Create a bar graph comparing your data to the class average ON GRAPH PAPER. ​Be sure to label your axes, title, and
create a key for your graph. Be sure to color your graph.​ ​Write your name on it and hang onto it for the following
questions.
Example:
Answer the following in complete sentences:
1. What are owl pellets? How are they formed? (See it in action ​here.​)
a.
b.

2. How do prey species (voles, shrews, rodents, small birds) benefit from owls?

3. How many animals did you find in your pellet? What animals were they?

4. Click ​here.​ Compare this skeleton to the MOST complete skeleton from your pellet. Which bones are similar?
Which are different? How do the arrangements of the skeletons compare?
Human vs______________
a.
b.
c.
5. Look at your graph comparing your data versus the class’s. How does your owl’s diet compare? What conclusions
can you make about your owl versus the larger population (the class)?
a.
b.

6. Watch this ​video.​ Describe the hunting strategy of the owl.

7. What adaptations make the the Barn Owl an efficient hunter? List ​2​ physical adaptations and ​1​ behavioral
adaptation. Justify your answers using​ outside sources​.
a.
b.
c.
8. Suppose the class data showed a majority of bird bones within the pellets. What conclusions could you make about the
ecosystem the pellets came from? ​Consider the poster on the board.