Owls have a unique way of digesting their food. Unlike other birds, they do not have a crop, but food owls eat goes immediately to the gizzard to be digested. The digestive juices in the gizzard break down the usable parts of the prey for the owl, leaving bones, feathers and fur behind. These undigested parts of the food are periodically regurgitated by owls in compact little pellets.
By investigating the contents of owl pellets, it is remarkably easy to get an idea of what a particular owl ate. It is not unusual to find nearly complete skeletons in a pellet, and it is common to find identifiable bones. The owl pellets the class looked at had bird and rodent bones in them.
Last week, armed with gloves, toothpicks and magnifying glasses, students in our class got to work in pairs to dissect barn owl pellets. There were some good finds as you can see below.
We want to extend a special thanks to our two middle school volunteers, Joely and Meghan. They were a big help!
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