I’m sad to report that Flaco, the Eurasian Eagle-Owl has died.
The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) has confirmed his death on their website.
The press release obfuscates some of the WCS’s responsibilities in Flaco’s death, however. While the vandal who released him is untimely responsible for Flaco’s death, the zoo failed to protect and recover Flaco. The WSC has never addressed the poor security at the Central Park Zoo, the public relations vacuum that led to the disruption of the rescue attempts, and the abandonment of the rescue attempts after only two weeks which the WCS justified because of Flaco’s ability to feed himself, ignoring the risks he faced in Manhattan and the risks he posed to native wildlife. The press release clearly was written by a public relations team who repeatedly put the WCS’s interests ahead of Flaco’s.
Alan Drogin lives in the building where Flaco was found and wrote this on the NYS Birds listserv.
From: Alan Drogin
Date: February 23, 2024 at 21:54:02 EST
To: NYS Birds NYSBIRDS-L@cornell.edu
Subject: [nysbirds-l] Flaco
About a month ago I posted about hearing Flaco in our neighborhood. I connected with Bruce Yolton who’s been photographing and reporting Flaco sightings on his website Urban Hawks. I’d been hearing Flaco regularly since then and a few us in our building have seen him sleeping on the fire escape adjacent to our courtyard.
Earlier this evening our super buzzed us to report that Flaco was likely dead, lying face down, wings splayed out just outside our building’s basement door. When I ran downstairs to have a look I saw some slight movement and immediately ran upstairs to report to the Wild Bird Fund and the NY Department of Environmental Protection. WBF fortunately being only a few blocks away immediately sent two volunteers to rescue him.
I don’t know if there is any chance he survived, but our prayers are with him.
Alan Drogin
It was comforting to know that Alan Drogin, an expert birder called the correct individuals, who quickly came to collect and treat Flaco. Thank you, Alan.