Warm Up: Read the passage and answer the questions on the back. This will be your exit ticket.

Essential Question: How do we determine what animals eat?

Agenda

Warm Up Review Owl Notes Owl Video Review Lab

OWL PELLET NOTES

What is an owl pellet?

Owls eat their food whole.

Owls have no teeth, so they cannot chew. They use their strong beaks to tear prey and swallow it whole.

The owl digests its meal by separating the softer materials (meat) from the bones.

It regurgitates the harder material with fur and feathers in the form of a pellet

How do pellets form?

1. Catching the prey Examples: birds, mice, lizards,

frogs, snakes, insects

2. Swallow the prey Whole or large chunks

3. Digestion The food travels down the

esophagus and into the gizzard

In the gizzard the meal is separated into 2 parts- those that are digestible and those that are now.

Digestible material continues to pass through the owl’s digestive tract. Material that is not digestible is formed into a pellet.

4. Regurgitation

While the owl is regurgitating the pellet, it looks like it is having difficulty breathing. Once the pellet is ejected, the owl settles back into a comfortable position.

What’s Inside the Pellet?

Anything that the owl cannot digest… Examples bones, feathers, and fur

Rodents (Mice, Rats, Voles)

Vole (short tail)

Mouse

Rat

Mole Live underground

Small eyes Large claws for digging

Shrew

Pointy nose

Food Web

Are owl pellets important?

Yes… Regurgitating owl pellets is a way for the

birds to keep their esophagus clean. The owl pellets allow scientists to learn

about the owl’s diet

Video

Dissection Directions