‘HOO-Dini’ owl on the free after vandalism at Central Park zoo enclosure: cops

They’re calling this brazen fowl “an actual HOO-Dini.”  

An owl was on the free on the Higher East Facet Thursday, after vandals let it get free from its enclosure on the Central Park Zoo, officers mentioned.

The Eurasian Eagle-owl named Flaco was found lacking from its exhibit at 8:30 p.m., a zoo spokesman mentioned in an announcement. 

“The exhibit had been vandalized and the chrome steel mesh minimize,” the spokesman mentioned.

A few half hour later, Higher East Siders noticed Flaco on Fifth Avenue and East sixtieth Avenue and notified the NYPD. 

However the nocturnal fowl of prey proved to be too slippery for officers and received away, cops mentioned. 

“Nicely, that was a hoot,” the NYPD’s nineteenth Precinct tweeted. “We tried to assist this lil clever man, however he had sufficient of his rising viewers & flew off.”

“@NYCParks Rangers, be looking out — he was final seen flying south on fifth Avenue.”

The NYPD’s Central Park precinct dubbed him “a recidivist in our space that magically disappears into the night time, an actual HOO-Dini.” 

Flaco made one other look within the early morning hours, however vanished by daybreak, zoo officers mentioned. 

“Zoo employees positioned the owl perched in a tree close to the zoo and stayed with it all through the night time,” the spokesman mentioned. “At dawn this morning, the owl flew from the tree on fifth Avenue and into Central Park the place we proceed to have visible contact with the fowl. Our focus and energy right now is on the protected restoration of the owl. We’ll problem updates as wanted.”

He had not been captured by Friday afternoon. 

By that point, police had no data on who may have been behind the vandalism.

Eurasian Eagle-owls are native to components of Europe, Asia and northern Africa – and dwell in wooded habitats, in keeping with the Peregrine Fund.