A gyrfalcon from the Woodland Park Zoo flew off zoo grounds Tuesday afternoon and was later found dead on a residential street near Green Lake.
The 15-year-old female gyrfalcon was in the middle of a routine free flight training exercise with her keepers, when she flew off the grounds. A resident later found the dead bird, apparently hit by a car.
While the zoo raptors may occasionally fly off during a keeper-supervised free flight program, they usually return within hours. The zoo’s birds of prey are not trained to hunt and are accustomed to getting food from their keepers. The free flight program for raptors is an important part of Woodland Park Zoo’s excellent animal care program, as free flight provides essential exercise for the raptors’ physical and behavioral health.
This gyrfalcon has left zoo grounds twice before in 2003 and 2005, and was recovered both times at the King County Cedar Hills landfill in Maple Valley, Wash.
5 responses so far ↓
1 Fnarf // Apr 17, 2009 at 1:00 pm
Damn, that’s tragic. I love that raptor program.
2 Bill // Apr 18, 2009 at 12:19 am
IIRC, that wasn’t a small bird… makes me think someone knows more about this.
Also, beware of the drivers taking a ‘short cut’ between Market and 99 by the Zoo, I’ve almost been hit a few times myself.
3 m // Apr 18, 2009 at 6:21 am
This is terribly sad. I love the raptor program too and the free flight portion is a fantastic moment. At least this old gal spent a good deal of her life in warm safe loving surroundings. I love our zoo and our zookeepers…..
4 mike // Apr 18, 2009 at 4:48 pm
“Also, beware of the drivers taking a ’short cut’ between Market and 99 by the Zoo, I’ve almost been hit a few times myself.”
It isn’t a ‘short cut’, it’s a way home for most of us who live by the zoo. That road is terribly marked, and needs a sign to warn motorists that the road merges into a parking lot — and that parking lot needs signs by where cars park to watch for cars.
I’m always amazed at how many moms get out of their cars and just allow their small kids to run all over – at the grocery store, at the park, wherever. Pay attention!
5 Robin // Apr 18, 2009 at 10:17 pm
This is sad. I was at the zoo when the bird flew off. I saw the trainer blowing a whistle to summon her back and the zoo staff combing through the brush to find her.
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