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Join the Mammal Society for a special, short course at the Angela Marmont Centre for UK Biodiversity in the Natural History Museum, London. Enjoy the unique experience of having a desk and stereo microscope of your own, sitting behind the scenes in the museum to attend a hands-on course, learning all about barn owls and their pellets and different small mammal skulls and jawbones.
Owls and birds of prey cannot digest the fur and bones of the animals which they eat. They swallow their prey whole, absorb all the nutrients from the flesh and then, about 6 hours later, cough up a few lumps containing everything which is no use to them. These lumps are called pellets.
Whether you are new to barn owl pellets or already familiar with them, Susanna will guide you through the small mammal bones which you could find inside the pellets. You will dissect the pellets and learn how to identify, to species level, the skulls and teeth which are inside.
On the course, Susanna will highlight the differences between the teeth and tooth cavities of the different species of shrew, vole and mouse. Hopefully, after the course, you will be equipped to dissect pellets on your own and, using the new Photographic Guide, identify the skulls and report your findings to the Mammal Society for their records.
Susanna has recently created a 44-page Photographic Guide to the Small Mammal Bones in Barn Owl Pellets for the Mammal Society. For the guide, Susanna has taken photos through her stereo microscope of the various bones commonly found in barn owl pellets. This guide will be used for additional support on the day.
There will also be taxidermy animals for you to look at including: a pygmy shrew, wood mouse, field vole, mole and hedgehog, as well as barn owl feathers and wings.
Trainer:
Susanna has been involved in wildlife education for over 12 years. She has an extensive private collection of natural history objects relating to local wildlife. Explore Susanna’s website here. Since 2010, Susanna has used The Nature Collection, to create and run workshops for people in Surrey & South West London, including over 26,000 children. Her passion is to inspire people of all ages to discover the intricate detail and wonders of the nature on our doorstep. She has an extensive private collection of natural history objects relating to local wildlife: all kinds of skulls, skeletons, wings, feathers, skins, antlers, insect specimens, nests and replica eggs. In 2022 she began to volunteer at the Mammal Society and has created an excellent array of free resources for the Mammal Youth Hub. She has created an Introduction to Barn Owl Pellets for the Mammal Youth Hub and is currently working on an extensive Photographic Guide to the Small Mammal Bones in Barn Owl Pellets for the more serious mammologist. Susanna lives near Richmond Park and in 2010, wrote a book of Family Trails, containing 5 walks each with 20+ items to spot on the way. She has often worked with the Friends of Richmond Park to run workshops for their young Discoverers section.
Course Overview:
12.45 – 1.00 Registration
1.00 Introductions
Session 1 (1.05 – 1.30) – PowerPoint on The Barn Owl & The Analysis of Barn Owl Pellets
- The Barn Owl
- Barn Owl Adaptations
- What are Pellets? Which birds produce them?
- Why are Barn Owl Pellets special?
- What can scientists learn from pellets?
- Other ways to monitor small mammals
- The Mammal Society Barn Owl Pellet Surveys
- The possibly invasive Greater white-toothed shrew!
- What will you find inside the Pellets?
- Guide to identifying vole, shrew, mouse & rat skulls & jawbones
Session 2 (1.30 – 2.30) – Dissecting Your Barn Owl Pellets
- Take apart your first pellet (guided step by step)
- Dissect, pick out the bones & rinse
- Check again for more bones & rinse. Leave to dry.
- Take apart another 1 or 2 pellets, at your own speed
- Pick out and clean all the skulls and jawbones. Leave to dry.
- Identify what you have found
2.30 Break (2.30 – 2.45)
Session 3 (2.45 – 3.05) PowerPoint on Small Mammals & How to Identify Their Remains in Barn Owl Pellets
- Introduction to Voles
- How to identify vole skulls, teeth & jawbones to species level: bank vole, field vole & water vole
- Introduction to Shrews
- How to identify shrew skulls, teeth & jawbones to species level: common shrew, pygmy shrew, water shrew and white-toothed shrews
- Introduction to Mice
- How to identify mouse skulls, teeth & jawbones to species level: wood mouse, house mouse, harvest mouse & yellow-necked mouse
- Introduction to the Brown Rat
- How to identify rat skulls, teeth & jawbones
Session 5 (3.05 – 3.45) – Looking Through the Microscope to Identify Your Skulls & Jawbones
- How to use the microscope on your desk
- Examine under the microscope, the skulls & jawbones collected from the pellets
- Identify which small mammal species, the skulls and jawbones are from
- Record your findings
Session 6 (3.45 – 4.00) – Summing Up and Overview
- Share our findings
Date:
This course will be held on Saturday 18th of March at 13:00 – 16:00.
Book your tickets here.
Location:
Angela Marmont Centre for UK Biodiversity in the Natural History Museum, London
Instructions of how to find the room will be sent closer to the event date.
Prices:
Please note, this event is designed for mature mammal enthusiasts. We ask that families with young children book on to our family friendly course.
You ticket will provide you with a bench, microscope and refreshments.
Adult – £30
For terms and booking conditions please click here.
If you have any queries please contact training@themammalsociety.org.