speotyto

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. An American genus of Strigidæ, containing several species of small long-legged earless owls which live in treeless regions and burrow in the ground, as S. cunicularia of the pampas of South America and S. hypogæa of the prairies of western North America; the burrowing owls. A variety of the latter also inhabits Florida, and the genus is likewise represented in the West Indies. S. hypogæa is the species which is found in association with prairie-dogs and spermophiles, giving rise to many exaggerated accounts of the relation between the bird and the mammal. These owls were formerly placed in the genus Athene, and were also called Ploleoptynx. See cuts under owl.