Owls eat voles, mice, shrews, etc. But what do they eat…?
VOLE: (left) Voles are for the most part vegetarian and leave small piles of vegetation at feeding sites. A Voles'
diet includes many things, including grasses, herbaceous plants, bulbs, seeds, flowers, leaves, roots of shrubs
and small trees, bark, tubers, bulbs, and sometimes insects.
MOUSE: (right) In the wild, most mice eat whatever vegetation is available, including fallen fruits and seeds.
These can include anything from tree bark to bulbs or roots, oats, corn or even potatoes and black beans. In the
winter, mice will dig through the snow in order to reach grass or sprouts. Certain mice, like the white-foot
species, are omnivorous and will eat insects or meat scraps, if available. Mice that live near farms are also likely
to feed on seeds, bulbs or crops that are in storage or being air-dried.
Pocket gopher
shrew
songbird
POCKET GOPHER: Pocket gophers only eat vegetation, including roots, bulbs, and other fleshy portions of
plants they encounter while digging underground. Gophers also eat the leaves and stems of plants around their
tunnel entrances and can pull entire plants into their tunnels. In areas with a snowpack, gophers will gnaw on
bark several feet up a tree or shrub. Coyotes, domestic dogs and cats, foxes, and bobcats capture gophers at their
burrow entrances; badgers, long-tailed weasels, skunks, rattlesnakes, and gopher snakes corner gophers in their
burrows. Owls and hawks capture gophers above ground.
SHREW: Shrews are are mouse-like in proportion, except for their long, pointed muzzles and tiny eyes. Most
are less than half the size of adult mice, and blackish or brownish in color, with a pale-colored belly.. Shrews
eat worms, insects, larvae, and pretty much any animal small enough to catch. They will also eat carrion (dead
stuff!) Shrews are preyed on by owls, snakes, and Pacific giant salamanders.
SONGBIRD: Some birds eat berries, seeds, and fruits, while others eat insects, worms, and grubs.