Should Flaco, the Escaped Eurasian Eagle-Owl Stay Free?

Flaco, an escaped Eurasian Eagle-Owl has been causing some controversy in New York. After he was released by vandals from the Bronx Zoo, debate has spawned about whether he should remain free or try to be rescued.
Link to article: abcnews.go.com...
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[@neeleyfolk]

Build him a secure Owl Nest box in the park, stream it and protect it. This is the kind of thing that could bring people together, and I'm sure the kids of NYC would love it.

[@TomSayles]

I suspect the owl paparazzi are much less annoying than the proximity of zoo visitors. Best case would be for him to find a nice nest box along fifth avenue w/ a live stream camera and become a KZbin star.

[@cheryldodd-marko9787]

As long as he is safe,and not going to access to RAT POISON..PEOPLE LEAVE HIM ALONE.🕊🇺🇲💕

[@Leaibolmmai]

Releasing of exotic species - regardless of happening intentionally or by accident - comprises enormous risks to ecosystems and biodiversity. It should be a no-brainer (and no practical or ethical problem) to recapture this individual and releasing it somewhere in Eurasia where it naturally belongs.

[@Charlie_wildlife_nature]

There’s also a great horned owl in the park whose been there since fall , along with tons of hawks coopers, red tails, sharpies , kestrels and osprey so there’s a lot of raptor competition

[@jessamineprice5803]

I think it should depend on whether the experts judge that recapturing it would be too upsetting and/or physically dangerous. Unfortunately, if it stays free, it does face plenty of risks. Interestingly even in its native range, the eagle-owl gets celebrity crowds. Here in Korea there have been a couple cases of eagle-owls moving their nest locations after too many people came to stare. Their locations are now Top Secret on EBird. 😅

[@johnhartley3596]

If the owl can be recaptured safety, considering that he/she appears to be hunting, it is my option that it be relocated and released at a location in Europe where he can be safely be released.

[@snowyowl5356]

I thought they are pretty closely related to the Great Horned Owl so is it possible it could cross breed with one? Is this a reason for concern?

[@MsDee_777]

Since he is surviving on his own I feel he should remain free.

[@Beryllahawk]

I feel like...if the owl is not in immediate danger, and doesn't represent any kind of big problem, let him be. Central Park is about as safe a place for a bird of prey as you're gonna find in New York City (no, I'm not saying it's safe, just safer than say, someone's backyard in Queens, okay). You're right that he won't find a mate, so there won't be that complication. He's eating rats, which I dare say NYC has PLENTY OF and so he's helping out a bit there. Same holds if he at some point eats a pigeon or two. You also make a fair point that he could eat some creature that ingested toxic substances, and get sick or die. That's part of the risk of being free, isn't it. I also very much agree that people are loading far too much meaning into this, and being more than a little foolish. The bird only knows "hey, I can fly where I want, I can catch food here, this is acceptable." He already doesn't much like the crowds, but he's been somewhat acclimated to people staring at him - the difference now is that they're possibly closer (and also there are no protections for him if someone decides to be horrible). He is on his own - which has its good side and its bad side. As for the vandals winning - wellllll, that depends on if they are ever caught. But the owl is in the park now, and honestly - let him remain until such time as he does need intervention. If and when he does - then catch him, and bring him back. Keep it simple. I don't mean that I don't care that vandalism happened though. I truly hate that anybody thinks it a good idea to damage zoo enclosures and bother the animals, no matter how noble they think their reasons are...and let's be real, far more vandalism occurs because people are foolish and take drunken bets or otherwise do dumb crap for dumb reasons. I'll never, ever forgive the college frat boys that vandalized the local zoo in my city, for instance. Their shenanigans caused a huge amount of trouble, and not one but TWO Chilean flamingos died - one directly because of the fools and their mishandling (they straight up kidnapped a male flamingo) and the second one indirectly (he had a bonded mate and she pined away, refused to eat). And had the guys been "trying to set them free" - I still wouldn't forgive, because that's short sighted and stupid, given that the environment here isn't livable for those birds. Similarly, the vandals who allowed this owl to escape were being stupid. NYC is not his native habitat, and so he faces a potentially less-than-ideal future full of uncertainty. I'd ask those vandals if THEY'D like to be "set free" in the middle of an unfamiliar and unfriendly environment with no support, no friends, and get stared at by strangers for hours every time they try to sleep. They absolutely DID NOT think this action through, and I really hope the city catches their dumb butts and fines them into the ground. But in this case, for the bird himself...if any bird can take care of itself in a place like Central Park, I feel like a Eurasian Eagle Owl is that bird. He's big, he's strong, he's healthy. He won't be spreading any diseases to the bird populations, he'll contribute to pest control inside the park, and likely won't LEAVE the park because there's no hunting out there. He may get sick and die, that is true. He definitely should be monitored, protected if it's possible, but otherwise - let him be. It's not ideal but it's not a disaster for the bird or the park.

[@snowyowl5556]

As long as people don't start thinking it's a vagrant wild bird like the mandarin 🙄

[@devonboulden2496]

My biggest concern is him eating poisoned rats.

[@BadgerlandBirding]

I think that’s valid

[@sylphofthewildwoods5518]

Birds were made to fly free. If it's capable of living in the park, then leave it alone.

[@AbHAT22]

I say, let the the owl be free, if it’s not a threat to the native species and can survive on its own.

[@am_cosmos]

I live in New York but have been too busy just trying to see the Bald Eagle in Prospect Park, Brooklyn instead. Definitely concerns of him ingesting a bit too much rat poison or getting into territorial battles with the local wild Great Horned Owls that show up in Central Park, potentially muscling out a native species. Though re-capturing him could also be stressful. It's tough and definitely a lot of grey areas to consider.

[@Ron-ui3xj]

There is no grey area. If humans didn't poison beautiful animals like rats birds wouldn' t be in danger. The problem is always us, human beings. We create all these problems.

[@thetyrannosaurusking8362]

As someone who also lives in New York and have seen Flaco himself. I believe he should be taken back into the zoo as he has 0 resistances to the diseases within Central Park. As what someone else also said in the reply if Flaco eats a poisoned rat we will just get a repeat of what happened to Barry. Better to catch him now then end up seeing the disaster.

[@Ron-ui3xj]

Or... Stop using poison.

[@krow4249]

He should be free especially he’s thriving and having a good rat control in NY. Only thing I’m concerned is the poison and mostly people.

[@ezekielfenstermaker6435]

Interesting event for that owl to be in the wild. Unfortunate that it doesn’t have humans protecting and feeding it though. I hope it survives life in Central Park and I hope all people, birders or not, respect its presence and do not harass it. It’s far away from its native range and may not know how to survive for long out there.

[@stefangoldensteinwildlife9929]

I like the Imagination that it should stay free. But think it should go back to the zoo. It is completly alone outside. At the zoo he wont die. Greets Stefan

[@Ron-ui3xj]

Dying isn't the worst thing. What would you like best? Live longer behind bars or live a shorter life being free? Besides, the owl left, didn't want to go back and made a choice. He chose freedom.

[@Ron-ui3xj]

Ps: the owl is not an "it" but a person just like you and me.

[@sparrowjax275]

hi im a beginner birder. just moved to denmark(dk) could you please give 3 birds as a challange list i am conflicted about the owl, sometimes they dont have enough space to stretch their wings in zoos but it would be really sad for it to die 😕 great content btw really enjoying it :)

[@sparrowjax275]

@@henrikbuusen thx !!

[@MH-pz8wf]

Hey all lives know what freedom is if given the chance. If he likes to return to his enclosure, I am sure he would hang out there and goes in by himself for sure

[@juanitakelly3082]

What was the word you used for "birds you can count on your list"? I couldn't make it out and closed caption interpretated it as "bad wrench"! I wonder if the owl was in the zoo because it was rescued and couldn't be rehabilitated and released? There are many wonderful raptor centers that run on this philosophy so the birds can survive and be ambassadors for the species. That, and if they are endangered is the only way I think they should be caged, so that they can be ultimately saved.

[@BadgerlandBirding]

Lol, vagrant - a bird that has wondered out of its usual range on its own. Vagrants are countable normally, escaped single birds are normally not. I hadn’t heard he was rehabilitated but I’m not 100% sure on his origins at the zoo.

[@annemarieelizabethrosevolo4366]

Well, since you live in Wisconsin, next door to Minnesota, maybe look into the International Owl Center, which has a female Eurasian eagle owl by the name of Uhu. Try to contact the IOC and see if Uhu could be brought to NYC to Central Park, in order for Uhu the Eurasian eagle owl could attract Flaco the Eurasian eagle owl, and maybe even back to his cage at the Central Park Zoo.

[@ilenehales7849]

It's a catch 22 situation.

[@chriscarlsen2100]

Hmmm... that's a tough one. I say leave it. It doesn't want to be caught and I'm sure it knows its way back to the zoo area. Sad that people are coming crowds though. It's also sad that it'll never find a mate. Isn't that what "free" wild birds live for. It's all about survival and the next generation. Oh what do I know. Lol!! But it is a tricky question.

[@Ron-ui3xj]

Zoo's shouldn't excist in the first place. Speciesism is the worst and unfortunately a lot of birders are speciesist themselves. Other species are NOT our property. We do not have the right to enslave them or use and abuse them. Not for entertainment, research or other reasons. I' m a birder, amateur ornitholigist and vegan. Happy this beautiful bird is free.

[@pauraque]

What about rehabilitation zoos?

[@Ron-ui3xj]

We shouldn't have those either. As an example: the city I live in has a bird sanctuary. They take in injured birds and when they're healthy again they're released in the wild. Now, take predators. They are being fed rodents for instance. This means that we decide that the life of this bird is worth more than all the lifes we feed her/him. Who are we to decide who gets to live and who gets to die?

[@pauraque]

Yea but what if the bird is injured from human induced causes. Wouldn’t it seem fair for us to make up for the harm we caused in the world.

[@Ron-ui3xj]

By harming other non human animals? We would have even more victims.

[@pauraque]

@@Ron-ui3xj But we're feeding them and giving them protection and care they need. How is that harm?