Owl Pellets

Vocabulary

• Regurgitate – to throw or pour back from, as from a cavity; the expulsion of material from the pharynx, or esophagus, usually characterized by the presence of undigested food.
• Owl pellet – regurgitated, undigested material from animals the owl has eaten.
• White wash – owl poop, like most bird poop, consists mostly of a white wash. The whiteness is caused by uric acid and is thought to be like urine.

Fun Facts

• Owls generally regurgitate 1-3 pellets per night.
• Some of the things that can be found by dissecting an owl pellet are skulls and other bones, feathers, teeth and beaks.
• White wash on the ground can be a sign that an owl ate overhead and, therefore, it marks a good place to look around for owl pellets.
• Rodent teeth, which can be found in owl pellets, contain iron, which causes them to be orange in color.