Flaco the Owl Flees Central Park for the Lower East Side

We have been following the charmed life of Flaco, the Eurasian eagle-owl who flew the coop in the Central Park Zoo nine months ago and has lived in freedom ever since. This week Flaco took off again, this time to a garden in the Lower East Side and beyond. Wherever he lands next is up to Flaco.

Flaco had been living – large – in Central Park’s North Woods section feasting on rats, proving his one-time captors wrong, who had said the 13-year-old owl could not survive on his own since he had never learned the requisite skills to hunt in the “wild.” 

This week he took off and was later found about five miles away, perched on a tree branch in a sculpture garden next to Kenkeleba House, an artists’ space on East Second Street between Avenues B and C.

If Flaco was thriving in the park, why did he leave? Some birders are speculating that he is seeking a mate. Others wonder if he was spooked by fireworks that boomed over Central Park in celebration of the New York Marathon on Friday night. We may never know.

Wildlife photographer David Lei was among the birders tracking Flaco’s flight southeast. “It was a tremendous relief to see him,” Lei wrote on X. “He appeared in excellent condition and engaged in his usual pre-flyout routine before flying from his fourth-story roost to the top of a six-story building.” Shortly thereafter Flaco flew east, destination unknown.

“I was worried to see Flaco in the East Village,” Lei continued, “but part of celebrating his freedom and pursuit of happiness is understanding that he is writing his own story now.”

Photo credit: Photo credit: Manhattan Bird Alert via X