Flaco was a Eurasian eagle-owl at New York’s Central Park Zoo. In February 2023, WCS said the stainless-steel mesh of his enclosure had been intentionally damaged, allowing him to leave the zoo. He then lived, flew and hunted around Central Park and New York streets, becoming a watched and mourned urban wild animal.

Death and necropsy

On February 23, 2024, Flaco died after striking a building in Manhattan. WCS said the initial findings were consistent with acute traumatic injury from the collision. Its final necropsy summary also recorded severe pigeon herpesvirus infection and exposure to four anticoagulant rodenticides, connecting Flaco’s death to the wider hazards urban wildlife faces: disease, poison and glass.

This archive does not identify the person who damaged the enclosure as a confirmed individual, and it does not generalize blame to all city residents or observers. What can be recorded is that Flaco’s year outside began with a damaged enclosure, ended in a building collision, and revealed additional disease and rodenticide burdens.

Why Flaco is recorded

Flaco’s story is not a simple choice between freedom and captivity. It shows how human actions, glass buildings, rodenticides, pathogens and animal management all meet in one city. Love for an animal must also mean not breaking barriers, not creating risk and not letting urban poison become invisible harm.

Timeline

• February 2023: WCS said the Central Park Zoo enclosure mesh was intentionally damaged and Flaco left the zoo.
• 2023-2024: Flaco lived in New York’s urban environment and became a public focus.
• February 23, 2024: Flaco died after striking a Manhattan building.
• March 2024: WCS released final necropsy findings noting viral infection and rodenticide exposure.

Public Sources

• WCS: Flaco death update after building collision.
• WCS: final necropsy report summary.
• The Guardian: Flaco dies after striking building.
• Wikimedia Commons: Flaco image, CC BY-SA 4.0, Rhododendrites.