What's Inside A Pellet

Owl pellets can contain many different things, but mostly they contain bones. On the left side of the screen is a photo of all the bones found from one owl pellet. See if you can find the different types of bones: hip bones (with the ball and socket joint), leg bones, curved rib bones, skull, lower jaw bones, vertebrae, and shoulder blades.

There are other items that are sometimes found in owl pellets. If the owl's meal was a bird, the feathers of the prey will found in the pellet. If the meal was a mouse or other rodent fur will make up most of the pellet.

Other interesting items have been found in pellets from other birds. Songbird pellets contain seeds, exoskeletons of insects, and plant stalks. They have also contain non-food items such as tin foil and rubber bands. Shorebird pellets contain the pieces of crab shells. They also contain seed cases. Birds that eat fish such as Osprey, will have fish bones inside their pellets. Imagine that anything a bird might eat that is not digestible will probably wind up in their pellet.