I've actually read something very similar taking place with Aztec rituals.
On that note. The same book, Conquest of Mexico 1843, states the following.
The Mexicans, according to Clavigero, believed in an evil Spir¬ it, the enemy of the human race, whose barbarous name signified “ Rational Owl.”
https://archive.org/details/ConquestOfMexicoPart3/Conquest%20of%20Mexico%20part%201/page/n103/mode/2up