Charles Ellicott Commentary Jeremiah 50:39

"Therefore the wild beasts of the desert with the wolves shall dwell there, and the ostriches shall dwell therein: and it shall be no more inhabited for ever; neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation." — Jeremiah 50:39 (ASV)

Wild beasts of the desert ... — The combination of these two forms of animal life seems taken from Isaiah 13:21-22.

In the original, the two words tziyyim and iiyyim have a kind of emphatic assonance. The English word for the first of these, tziyyim, corresponds to its etymology, but the animal referred to has been identified by some naturalists as wild cats, which, according to Baruch 6:22, appear to have abounded in Babylon.

Regarding the second word, iiyyim, the Authorized Version follows an incorrect etymology. Strictly, the word means “howlers” and should be translated as “jackals.” Therefore, for “owls,” read “ostriches,” as in Isaiah 13:21.