A Slice, A Ribbit, and a Pellet: Our Year-End Science Journey!

 

“Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.”

— Lao Tzu

 

The school year may be winding down, but that doesn’t stop learning from happening! In our final month, we dove into three fascinating dissections — mandarin oranges, frogs, and mysterious owl pellets!

The experience was a blast! With the support from my fabulous teacher, Mrs. Lauder, and my friend and dissection buddy, Aditya, we tackled every task with focus and fun! What are the tasks? Here is a list of tasks below:

 

Learning Objectives:

  • Learn and Practice using dissection tools on mandarin oranges
  • Dissect and Identify the organs of a frog
  • Investigate food chains and predator-prey relationships
  • Identify bones and reconstruct a small mammal skeleton
  • Practice scientific observation and documentation
  • Reflect on the experience through a blog post

 

Mandarin Orange Dissection

With limited time on our hands, we dove straight into the dissections. First up was the mandarin orange dissection, in which we were to carefully remove the ‘skin’ of the orange with accuracy and precision. It might sound simple, but using actual dissection tools made it surprisingly exciting and engaging!

Uncut Clump vs Cut Slice
My Final Product: Cut Orange Slice

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Frog Dissection

Next on the list was the frog dissection, which was gross but unexpectedly fun. With diagrams given to us by Mrs. Lauder to help identify organs, we began our careful cutting.

 

To our surprise, the frog was filled to the brim with eggs! The sheer quantity of them completely covered the internal organs. Only after gently disposing of them were we able to fully explore the frog’s anatomy.

The nictating membrane of the frog’s eye
Half cut frog
Cut open frog with eggs and organs

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What really surprised me was how many eggs we found, and how different the organ sizes were compared to those in humans. Biology is such a fascinating branch of science!

 

Owl Pellet Dissection

Finally, it was time for the Grand Finale: Dissecting sterilized owl pellets to uncover the remains of what our feathered predator had consumed.

For this, we used a variety of materials for this project, including:

  • Sterilized Owl Pellet
  • Dissection tools (tweezers, tray, scalpel, pins, thick probes, and thin probes)
  • Construction paper as a base for building the skeleton
  • Glue

 

Instructions:

  1. Observe the Owl Pellet

Examine the size, shape, and texture. Make predictions about what you might find.

  1. Dissect Carefully

Use tweezers to gently pull apart the pellet. Sort and clean the bones.

  1. Identify the Bones

Use the chart to match bones to specific animals (e.g., rodent, bird, mole)

  1. Articulate the Skeleton

Arrange and glue the bones onto the base to reconstruct the animal.

  1. Document your Work

Take photos of your process and final skeleton

  1. Post Your Blog Reflection

 

At first, we expected the pellet to resemble a soggy lump of waste like a human’s. But to our surprise, it was a compact, dry clump of fur. It wasn’t that big, probably around the size of a human thumb. The smell wasn’t that horrible either, as it wasn’t as pungent as we had thought.

Using primarily tweezers and pins, we began pulling the pellet apart with care. Bit by bit, we slowly dug out tiny bones like buried treasure. After more digging and examination, we realized our owl had feasted on two small mammals, complete with two distinct skulls and two sets of bones!

Initial Dissection
Post-Dissection

 

 

 

 

Skull, Bones, Fur, and Tools
Bones collected and Identified (Some bones are missing from the picture)
Our Workspace in the Science Room

 

Next, we placed the bones into a petri dish and cleaned them out using good old hydrochloric acid.

Once they were cleaner and whiter, we felt more comfortable holding it with our bare hands. Using a bone identification chart, we managed to match each piece to its correct place.

Our Articulated Skeleton

 

Given Owl Pellet Bone Chart

 

Given Vole Skeleton Diagram

 

 

Given Skull Identification

 

 

But since the skeletons weren’t complete, we decided to combine the bones to reconstruct on hybrid creature. After some precise gluing, labelling, and some creative puzzle solving, our mixed-and-matched skeleton was finally assembled!

Our Articulated and Labelled Skeleton

 

Owl Pellet Dissection Reflection

 

What surprised you during the dissection?

One of the biggest surprises to me was how much fur there was in the pellet. I had expected most of it to be digested, but instead, it was enough to form a solid pellet! Even more expected was that we uncovered two sets of bones! That meant double the skulls, double the fun, and way more tiny bones to work with!

 

What did you learn about owl diets and ecosystems?

Although we didn’t have time to learn about owl biology specifically, I did learn that owls can’t digest fur or bones, which is why they make their pellets. It’s wild to think that we can uncover entire skeletons from just an owl pellet, and I wonder if we could do the same with other animals.

 

How did this activity connect to what we’ve learned in class?

This activity connects to what we’ve learned in class by helping us practice and apply our scientific skills, from observation and analysis to teamwork and critical thinking! It also reminded me of last year’s IPCA presentation, where we researched animal ecosystems.