Pygmy owl  Pygmy owls are members of the genus Glaucidium. They belong to the typical owl family, Strigidae. The genus consists of about 31 to 35 species distributed worldwide. The exact number of species is somewhat disputed. These are mostly small owls, and some of the species are called "owlets". Most pygmy owl species are nocturnal and hunt mainly large insects and other small prey. "Glaucidium" forms a paraphyletic group with "Surnia". The supposed prehistoric species ""Glaucidium" dickinsoni" is now recognized as a burrowing owl, probably a paleosubspecies "providentiae". Bones of an indeterminate "Glaucidium" have been recovered from Late Pliocene deposits in Poland (Mlíkovský 2002).