Individualized Owl Pellet Study

SCIENTIFIC CONCEPTS / PROCESSES

• Dissect an owl pellet
  
• Identify prey species with illustrated worksheets
  
• Study food chains and feeding habits of owls
  
• Learn about animal skeletons

Instructions include descriptions and illustrations of prey animals, including their skulls.

A student uses the basic skeletal diagram to determine where bones found in the pellets are located in the actual structure of a prey mammal.

The student glues the bones to this card making a permanent mount.

Owl Pellet Study Kits

Owls are adapted to catch and kill small prey quietly and accurately. Because owls have weak stomach muscles and stomach acids, they regurgitate undigested materials as fur balls. These fur balls, called owl pellets, often contain the skulls, bones, teeth, and claws of mammals; beaks and claws of birds; exoskeletons of insects; insect larvae; vegetable fibers; and owl feathers. Sometimes hard parts of reptiles, amphibians, or fish are found.

These owl pellets can be effectively used to study the food web of a particular eco-region. All owl pellets in a kit are collected from a single region, sterilized, and individually wrapped.