New Yorkers are mourning the loss of Flaco, a beloved Eurasian eagle owl who escaped from the Central Park Zoo a year ago and has been flying freely around the city ever since.
Fans of the iconic creature expressed sadness following the death of Mr. X, who crashed into a building on West 89th Street on Friday.
Some people call him “A moving portrait of the city’s wildness and wonders”, and another said that his death was “A painful end to a glorious year of free flight.”
Some praised Flaco for bringing city residents together, saying his story of resilience gave them hope.
“He was a majestic figure who brought our city together in strange and wonderful ways.” Kemberly Richardson of Eyewitness News wrote:.
“The story of your exploits in New York made everyone’s day a little brighter.” Added @moelizam.
David Ray, who lives in Midtown East, told the Post he has taken “thousands of photos” of Flaco this year and has seen Flaco “well over 100 times,” including just last week.
“I was sad beyond words to learn of his death. It hurt so much, especially since he had just spent a year in the wild and seemed to be doing so well,” Ray said.
“The last time I saw him was a week ago, cheering from a water tower on the Upper West Side, and he looked very healthy and strong. He was jeering at me.”
Ray, a real estate investor and photographer, took his first photo of Flaco the night he went missing from the zoo in February last year.
“Since then, I’ve been watching him and seeing how he’s adapted, improved his flying skills and learned to hunt,” he said. “And then we saw him settle into life in the park and eventually explore the city.”
Flaco had been in captivity for 12 years, but flew away from the Central Park Zoo last winter after vandals vandalized the zoo’s enclosure.
“There are very few things that all New Yorkers can agree on, but loving Flaco was one of them,” Melissa Irmo, founder of the education company The Stock Swoosh, told the Post.
Irmo, who lives on the Upper West Side, recently took up bird watching as a hobby, but he regrets seeing Flaco only once.
“I always say I’m going today, but then life gets busy,” she said. “As New Yorkers, we work so hard. We think these birds will be here forever, but that may not be the case, so it’s a lesson to get out and enjoy the park more.” ”
