Facts on Barn Owl Pellets

Barn owls live all over the world.

Owls cannot digest the hair, teeth and bones of their prey. Instead, these parts are expelled in the form of an owl pellet. Barn owl pellets are regularly used for classroom dissection, and learning more about them can shed some light on the nature of the barn own itself.

Function

The barn owl, like all owls, does not have a crop. The crop is an organ in birds that allows them to pulverize the hair, bones and teeth of their prey so that it can be safely eliminated from their bodies. Owls cannot pass these materials through their body, so instead they will regurgitate it orally.

Location

Barn owls live on every continent in the world except for Antarctica. As the name implies, they prefer to live the upper rafters of barns, where they will eat numerous pests that get into the feed grain and seed stored in the barn. Owls produce pellets where they roost and barn owl pellets are easy to collect from barns.

Time Frame

The barn owl is active at night. It is a nocturnal hunter, and during the day, it will sleep in the rafters of a barn. Owls will produce pellets between 16 and 20 hours after they have devoured their prey.

Features

A barn owl pellet usually ranges between 1½ to 2 inches long, and it might contain remains from a number of different animals. Rats, frogs, weasels, moles and mice are all common prey for barn owls, as are starlings, voles and shrews.

Considerations

Before picking them apart, you should sterilize barn owl pellets, as they can contain parasites. Sterilizing the pellets will also remove any lingering musty odors from them.

References

• Bemidji State University: The Barn Owl Pellet
• Biology Corner: Owl Pellets