Introductory
WILDLIFE SPECIES: Speotyto cunicularia | Burrowing Owl 



ABBREVIATION : 
SPCU


SYNONYMS : 
Athene cunicularia


COMMON NAMES : 
   burrowing owl


TAXONOMY : 
The currently accepted scientific name of burrowing owl is Speotyto
cunicularia (Molina).  Speotyto is a monotypic genus.  Subspecies of
burrowing owl occurring in the United States and Canada are [2,58]:

S. c. hypugaea  burrowing owl, western burrowing owl, Colorado burrowing owl
S. c. floridana  Florida burrowing owl

Karyotype and DNA-DNA hybridization analyses show that burrowing owl is
not closely related to Athene, the genus in which it was formerly placed
[2,58].


ORDER : 
Strigiformes

CLASS : 
Bird

FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS : 
No special status

OTHER STATUS : 
State Status:  Burrowing owl is listed as endangered in Minnesota and
Iowa and as a species of special concern in California, Oregon,
Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah,
Oklahoma, and Florida [34,46].

Canadian Status:  Burrowing owl is listed as threatened in Alberta,
British Columbia, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan [69].

Other:  Burrowing owl is classified as a species of special concern on
the Audubon Society's Blue List [68].


COMPILED BY AND DATE : 
C. L. Bushey, 1986


LAST REVISED BY AND DATE : 
Janet L. Howard, April 1996


AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION : 
Howard, Janet L. 1996; Fischer, W. C. 1987; Bushey, C. L. 1986. Speotyto
cunicularia. In: Remainder of Citation

Related categories for Wildlife Species: Speotyto cunicularia | Burrowing Owl