Eurasian eagle owl escapes Central Park Zoo after cage cut by vandals

A Eurasian eagle owl has escaped its enclosure at Central Park Zoo in New York City after vandals cut its stainless steel mesh cage.

The owl, named Flaco, was reported missing from its exhibit on Thursday night, and was later spotted walking along New York City's iconic shopping stretch on Fifth Avenue.

Officials tried to recapture the bird, but it flew off before it could be caught. It was last seen in Central Park on Friday morning. 

The owl was intercepted by the NYPD on a sidewalk by 5th Avenue and 60th Street but able to evade their custody, and on Friday morning made off into Central Park.

'Our focus and effort at this time is on the safe recovery of the owl,' zoo officials said in a news release. 'We will issue updates as needed.'

It comes after a series of break-ins at animal enclosures across the US, including in Dallas and Louisiana.

A Eurasian eagle owl has escaped its enclosure at Central Park Zoo in New York City after vandals cut its stainless steel mesh cage. The police tried to contain the own in a cage but it became scared and flew off

The owl, named Flaco, was reported missing from its exhibit at Central Park Zoo on Thursday night, and was later spotted walking along New York City's iconic shopping stretch on Fifth Avenue

Eurasian eagle-owls are one of the larger owl species with a wingspan greater than 6 feet and have mottled brown and black feathers with distinctive ear tufts. They are not native to North America. 

This one might do fine in Central Park if it knew how to hunt, said David Barrett, an avid birder who chronicles the city's avian population via Twitter accounts including Manhattan Bird Alert and Brooklyn Bird Alert.

Eurasian eagle-owls have even been known to make their home in urban environments like city parks, so long as long as there are adequate nesting spots and prey to hunt. 

After years of captivity, however, 'this owl has surely lost its skills for hunting,' Barrett said. He estimated that the owl would starve after a day or two in the wild.

Zoo staff located the owl perched in a tree on Thursday night and stayed with it throughout the night.

At sunrise on Friday morning it then flew from the tree on 5th Avenue into Central Park, where the zoo said it made visual contact. It is understood that Flaco spent the morning and afternoon in the park.

Barrett confirmed on Friday afternoon that rangers had been sent to investigate how the owl might be brought back into captivity.

The Eurasian eagle-owls are indigenous many countries in both Europe and Asia, from much of Spain to as far as China to the east. They can live for around 60 years.

It take the name eagle-owl because of its size, which is not dissimilar to that of an eagle. They are among the largest types of owl in existence. 

 Flaco, pictured on the loose last night, was able to evade the NYPD and made off into Central Park in the morning

On Friday morning at sunrise the bird was spotted in Central Park and perched itself on a tree near to 5th Avenue, where police had tried to capture it the night before

After years of captivity in Central Park Zoo it is not expected that the owl will have the hunting skills it would need to stay alive in the wild

The vandalism at the New York City zoo occurred after a string of animal disappearances and other odd incidents across the country, including at the Dallas Zoo.

A 24-year-old Texas man was arrested on Thursday in connection with the kidnapping of two tamarin monkeys from Dallas Zoo. The man was taken into custody near Dallas Aquarium on Thursday and charged with animal cruelty.

Both monkeys were found unharmed on Tuesday, a day after they went missing, just south of the zoo in Lancaster. 

The man was discovered after officers found the monkeys inside an empty church that was also filled with cats, birds and other small animals, police said.

Meanwhile he was shown in strange security footage creeping around the zoo apparently eyeing up animal enclosures and eating Doritos.

Less than a week ago a dozen monkeys were stolen in a zoo burglary in Louisiana. The primates were taken from their enclosure at Zoosiana on Saturday, staffers at the Broussard zoo revealed in a statement, adding that the incident occurred moments before midnight. 

In total, 12 squirrel monkeys were taken, the zoo said - with officials claiming an unidentified perpetrator targeted other small monkeys during the break-in as well, before only taking the aforementioned animals.

Officers have yet to make an arrest in the case.

Officers found the monkeys inside an empty church (pictured) that was also filled with cats, birds and other small animals

Meanwhile Irvin was shown in eerie security footage creeping around the zoo apparently eyeing up animal enclosures