Owl pellets are commonly found around owl roosting sites and are examined in school lessons to detect the skeletal remains of their prey and determine their eating habits.One student questions if the owl pellets are a serious bacterial concern.What is a reasonable and accurate reply?
A)Owl pellets would be a serious hygienic concern since they have gone through the bird's intestine and,similar to a human intestine,would be mixed with many gut bacteria
B)Owl pellets are probably not too serious a problem because bacteria in an owl's intestine are probably not disease agents for humans
C)Owl pellets have not been through the owl intestine but stopped at the highly acidic stomach where most environmental bacteria would have been killed;they were then regurgitated enclosed in sloughed owl gut lining and any bacteria would be environmental,but brief sterilization in an oven should suffice
D)All of the choices are correct
E)None of the choices is correct

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Owl pellets have not gone through the entire owl intestine, but have been regurgitated from the stomach where most environmental bacteria would have been killed due to the highly acidic conditions. Any bacteria present would be environmental and brief sterilization in an oven should be sufficient. Therefore, owl pellets are probably not a serious bacterial concern.

Owl Pellets Are Commonly Found Around Owl Roosting Sites and Are