By Carol Tannenhauser
New Yorkers are awakening to sad news on Saturday morning.
Flaco, a symbol of freedom and resilience, has died, apparently from injuries sustained in a crash on Friday night into a building on West 89th Street, according to The New York Times.
For those who may not know, Flaco is…was…the Eurasian eagle-owl who escaped from the Central Park Zoo almost exactly one year ago; the first anniversary of his freedom was on February 2nd.
He attained his release in a fashion befitting New York City: a vandal, who may have fancied himself a Good Samaritan, cut the wire mesh of the cage that had held Flaco captive for his entire life — about 13 years — and he was out.
The city was mesmerized.
Zoo workers tried to lure and recapture the eagle-owl, but Flaco eluded them, appearing in many sitings — last November, on a fire escape on the UWS. Once he took a brief trip to the Lower East Side, igniting neighborhood anxiety, but he soon returned to Central Park, where he spent the majority of his time. It is not hard to guess who New Yorkers were rooting for — and, ultimately, Flaco prevailed. He showed the authorities that he could survive in this wildest of wilds, assuaging their central fear that he would not know how to hunt for food and starve. Instead, he learned — and we would like to think he had the year of his life doing so.
Why are we so invested in Flaco’s triumph in life, and now, as he becomes immortal? As Robert Beck wrote in an essay in the Rag:
“Flaco’s break for freedom initiated a suspension of everyday newyorkerness and a call for a natural justice. We saw it with the hawks nesting on the ledge, and the coyote, and now the Eurasian eagle-owl. The desire to have individual pluck be rewarded, and to win out over the vagaries of chance and sharp edges of the city. We are invested in Flaco’s adventure, seeing ourselves in the story and imagining the corner of our cage opening up, and with the briefest of consideration, off we go.”
Rest in peace Flaco. Thanks for the lift. You will not be soon forgotten.
Thanks to commenter Amaro for providing this link to a planned memorial. And The NY Times has a lovely look back at Flaco’s year of freedom here.
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There is supposed to be a memorial today in Central Park. If anyone can learn of details (time/exact location) I’d appreciate it. Thanks.
Twitter link contains a google map locator https://x.com/birdcentralpark/status/1761252133020512496?s=46&t=rMMeCf1qfcqR2uRrFHqOrA
The oak tree in the park on west 104th and east side drive.
Rest in peace Flaco. We hardly knew ye. In Avian We Fly.
This hits hard.
I think the person who cut Flaco’s enclosure wires is called a vandal, not someone who should be considered a good samaritan. I loved the stories about Flaco, but he survived “in the wild,” so to speak, after living in an enclosure for 13 years. Why was this a good thing?
Because honestly, wild animals, don’t belong in cages. Imagine, looking at tall trees outside your cage for 13 years and not being able to fly into them and roost. Imagine never knowing a female of your species. Imagine being spoonfed for 13 years when your natural instinct is to hunt. That’s why.
Flaco escaped from the protected environment of the Centrals Park Zoo because of an act of vandalism. Was his brief time of freedom worth it?
Every owl dies. Not every owl really lives.
Well said Owl Gibson
I think it was. A year of freedom vs. sitting in a cage doing nothing. He got to live the life he was meant to live, albeit tragically curtailed.
Fly in Peace Flaco we will miss you.
How sad about Flaco. I’m wondering was the building that he crashed into glass, so he got confused?
As for the memorial in Central Park, it’s both touching and reassuring to know there are still some humane humans left on our planet. RIP Flaco — may you be flying with the angels!
Friends and Animal Rescue experts have increasingly commented that Flaco could have been captured within the first hour if well meaning and curious photographers etc. had not gotten in the way of his rescue. I am so sorry, little Flaco. A beautiful and innocent spirit. Rest well! xoxo
Hope was a thing with feathers.
I’m gutted.
RIP Flaco. My heart is broken. Please remember that reflective glass and un-shielded non-essential lighting are killers. Please do all you can to prevent bird collisions and help the hundreds of bird species that migrate through NYC in the spring and fall. Thanks to the Wild Bird Fund at 565 Columbus Ave, New York, NY 10024 for all their service in rehabilitating birds and wildlife.
Another lesson as to why animals don’t belong in cages or tanks in the first place. RIP dear Flaco.
Obviously, cities present challenges for animal life that don’t exist in the environments to which they are native. Nevertheless, Flaco demonstrated that he was as able to feed himself and otherwise survive here as wild city birds do (until they die naturally or by flying into windows, being hit by vehicles, etc). Owls know how to return to nesting and feeding sites. Flaco did not return to the zoo. People who cling to the description “vandal” are merely evidencing a particular values-based opinion about animal life and who is entitled to delimit it and for what reasons. Lest people jump to assume that the zoo was doing a favor to the the Flacos of the world by containing him, the Eurasian eagle owl is not an endangered species.
I was privileged to see (and hear!) Flaco on nearby buildings for the last several months. Last Tuesday I heard him hooting on the roof above my terrace for the better part of the evening, and wondered if he was looking for love — or just dinner. He brought joy and awe to so many Upper West Siders, and I hope his year of freedom meant as much to him as it did to us.
What a privilege to have seen and heard him. RIP, splendid Flaco. The city will miss you terribly.
Robert Beck got it so right—we imagine “a corner of our cage opening up, and…off we go”. I’m still flying with Flaco.
lovely words by you and Mr. Beck
You will be missed, dear friend. Godspeed.
Sad to hear.
This is sad news indeed. I’d let myself start hoping he might manage to eke out a normal lifespan here.
This is so terribly sad. His story of resilience was so inspiring. He was beautiful and a regular sight in my neighborhood. You will be remembered and missed, Flaco.
Devastating week! First Navalny and now Flaco, both shining lights of inspiration and freedom tragically taken away from us, though never forgotten. At least Flaco, despite his untimely death, got to experience freedom from his enclosure, i.e., prison. Why do people still think it’s a good idea to lock up wild animals who never chose incarceration? I think it’s time to set them free and let them live their best lives like Flaco demonstrated. And while you’re at it, let’s get rid of the abused carriage horses already!
For people who are heartbroken about Flaco, please consider a charitable donation to help people or animals in need.
There are so many who need help.
For example, Doctors Without Borders or Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (protects elephants etc) or Borneo Orangutan Survival
or Wild Bird Fund who help so many of our New Yorker avian friends
Yes.
An another commenter reminded about plight of carriage horses.
Lots to do if we are truly concerned.
I’ve been thinking about whether his year of freedom was “worth it,” and I think we have to recognize that he made a. choice. He could have gone back to the zoo, he could have gotten into the carrier the cops put out for him but he didn’t. He chose and his choice was respected,finally. A good thing!
My comment I wrote when reading about his demise in the NYT….::
Oh, I am so sad. And I am so lucky! I will never forget Flaco’s and my 2 encounters..,,,he on my airconditioner……and me about a foot and a half away ,,,,, our barrier, the window, He was big and gorgeous. He mainly was perched looking for food, I guess, but when his head turned and we were eye-to-eye, I was frozen by his awesomeness. We stared at each other for I think a half a minute, and when I slowly reached over to my phone to snap a picture, he was gone. Thank you Flaco. You gave me an overwhelming feeling of wonderment and joy. My air conditioner is always here for your ghost, it’ll be safe.
I just wanted to add to my comment above by saying glass collisions also happen because of the illusion that birds can fly into the interior of the building because the glass is transparent. Especially problematic at corners of modern buildings with tall windows that meet at the corners, suggesting an unfettered ‘fly through’. A small pet or houseplant near the windows can also entice our feathered friends who can’t recognize and avoid the glass. We can make a difference with bird friendly architecture and design and thoughtful remediations to prevent deadly bird collisions. Lights out, New York!
Along with so many other New Yorkers, I remain heartbroken at Flaco the Owl’s passing. True, if not for the fact that someone released Flaco by vandalizing his enclosure, Flaco would not have had a year of freedom. Thousands of admirers would not have had the opportunity to rejoice in seeing him, to learn from him, and to cheer for him, sincerely hoping that he would have a safe and happy existence in our city. It’s also true that Flaco received much more recognition flying around the city than he was getting while sitting in his lonely cage at the zoo. But for anyone who wants to give a medal to the vandal who cut open this magnificent bird’s cage, I’d say, not so fast. As far as I know, this person did not leave any note describing his motives. Far from being some kind of folk hero, it’s entirely possible that he was just a punk, copycatting recent acts of vandalism at various other zoos. Maybe he just wanted to do something to “give the finger” to authority. Maybe, after sneaking into the zoo, he found that Flaco’s enclosure was just the easiest one to vandalize. Thus, we can’t assume that his actions were compassionate or idealistic. We don’t know what kind of hole that this person cut in Flaco’s enclosure. Did he leave sharp wires surrounding this “escape hatch”? Did he think about the possibility that Flaco could have scraped himself, and could have died from bleeding and infection? We don’t know if this person really gave a flying feather about Flaco or not.