Take part in the Maine Owl Pellet Project





Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife





*mefishwildlife.com*






Hoot for Maine's Owls this Superb Owl Sunday!
short-eared owl
Join the Maine Owl Pellet Project!

dissected owl pellet

As everyone knows, Superb Owl Sunday is all about the snacks, and our biologists want to find out more about Maine owls? go-to munchies. You can help us tackle this mission by becoming a community scientist for the Maine Owl Pellet Project!

Owl pellets are like instant replays of an owl?s diet and studying them can give us a sneak peek at the playbook of a species.

The goal of Maine Owl Pellet Project is not only to better understand the diet of Maine?s owls, but also the distribution and composition of the small mammal populations on which they prey. Extra points for the detection of the elusive State Threatened northern bog lemming!



*Learn more* [ [link removed] ]


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How to Participate

As a community scientist, all you need to do is intercept owl pellets and pass them off to us for analysis. Hoot, hoot, it?s a snap!

*Find*

Setting out to find an owl pellet [ [link removed] ] can feel like searching for a needle in a haystack, but learning more about owl sign and behavior can increase your chances of success.?

*Collect*

Take some photos of the pellet and its surroundings and record the location, then collect the pellet using a ziplock bag to minimize risk associated with handing pellets. Next, fill out the online form [ [link removed] ] to receive a submission ID.

*Send*

Place the owl pellet and a slip of paper with your submission ID in an envelope and send to:

owl pellet

*Maine Owl Pellet Project*

*c/o Dr. Zach Olson*

*University of New England*

*11 Hills Beach Rd.*

*Biddeford, ME 04005*



*Get Started* [ [link removed] ]


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More information

A small owl expelling a pellet while perched in a tree
What is an owl pellet?

Owls swallow their prey whole and later regurgitate indigestible materials such as bones and fur in the form of pellets. These pellets provide a detailed record of what the owl has eaten and can give us a snapshot of the small mammal community living near where the pellet was found.?

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northern bog lemming
*What is a northern bog lemming?*

The northern bog lemming is small, rare, difficult to distinguish from other species, and holds the title of the most elusive native mammal in Maine. Research suggests they are sparsely distributed in remote ecosystems, making this State Threatened species notoriously difficult to study. Finding evidence of them in owl pellets could answer questions about this natural history mystery!







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*We are proud to partner on this project with the?University of New England, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and members of the public, like you, who are passionate about Maine's wildlife.?The project is funded by a grant from the?Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund [ [link removed] ].*








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