Whooo came for a visit?

Carpenter Nature Center was our special guest this week!  Naturalists Alan and Kristin brought two of their feathered friends, a Great Horned Owl and a Red-tailed Hawk.

We learned that both owls and hawks can turn their heads almost all the way around to help them look for food.

 Owls and hawks are both birds of prey, also called raptors.  Raptors are birds that have very good eyesight for 

finding food, strong feet for holding food, and 

a strong, curved beak for eating.

    

Leading up to this special event, our students learned about owls by researching, dissecting owl pellets and creating owl eyes.  Check out some pictures below!

The children really enjoyed dissecting owl pellets to look for bones of mice, shrews and voles.  Here are a few funny quotes overheard during the activity.

"I found the foot of a duck!"
"I think this is a drumstick."
"Wendy, I can't find the wishbone."
"I found a tube that carries blood.  I think it's from a squirrel."