Flaco, an Eurasian eagle owl who fled the Central Park Zoo in New York, has died.
According to the New York Times, the owl gained a local celebrity after escaping the zoo after someone tore off his netting. He later settled in Manhattan. Falco’s ascent to popularity began the night after he fled the Central Park Zoo, when he was seen on Fifth Avenue.
Flaco allegedly died on February 23 after striking’ a structure on the Upper West Side. The Wildlife Conservation Society made a formal statement alerting the public that Falco was discovered deceased on the ground, causing building inhabitants to contact the Wild Bird Fund, who confirmed his death.
According to the New York Post, the 4.1-pound celebrity bird experienced “substantial haemorrhage under the sternum and in the back of the body cavity around the liver,” according to the necropsy report.
The necropsy found that Flaco was in good physical condition and had obtained prey despite having no hunting experience since joining the zoo as a fledgling 13 years earlier. According to the necropsy report, the owl weighed 1.89kg (4.1lb), which was just 2% less than his previous measurement at the zoo.
After the news of his death spread, Flaco’s followers flooded social media with tributes and condolences. Manhattan Bird Alert posted a stunning video of Falco on X (previously Twitter) with the caption, “Listen to one of Flaco’s hooting sessions in Central Park’s North Woods.” We’ve always found his hoots comforting, a means for him to communicate his existence and vitality—and, in recent months, the only way to find him at night. “Hoot on, Flaco!”
Another admirer shared a series of images from Falco’s monument at 104th and East Drive, calling them “02/24/24 Today at Flaco’s Memorial on 104th and East Drive.”
“Before his untimely death, my mom (@doreenkassel) memorialized Flaco on one of her hand-painted ceramic pinch pots,” a third member of the public tweeted.
“At Flaco’s memorial! “What a stunning photo of Flaco by JacquiUWS,” said another admirer, grieving Falco’s passing.
The New York police are still seeking the person who let him out of his enclosure at Central Park Zoo a year ago.
Flaco fans, who heard him every night on the Upper West Side, claimed he was silent in the days preceding his death and believed that he was ill.
