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EdgeOrnery6679 t1_j955e7a wrote

Id be concerned about the amount of poisoned rats he'll be eating.

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metromade t1_j98fus7 wrote

New York isn't poisoning rats because of raptors. That's why we're overrun with rats. They are everywhere.

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ECK-2188 t1_j95g6ih wrote

Now we just gotta find Flaco some owl bitches

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Tr3snyc t1_j95nwhd wrote

How soon until the children’s book comes out? He is now on a level with Pale Male and Glamour Duck.

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captainthomas t1_j98xxcr wrote

It's probably not a good idea to teach children that animals raised in captivity will do just fine on their own if they make it back into the wild. This one seems to have been able to figure out how to survive for himself, but most do not.

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RNReef t1_j95szwv wrote

We had a family of owls here in Florida, always in the same park/tree, that the local photographers would love to shoot. They ate rats that contained poison and they all died. Horrible and I wouldn’t be surprised if this happened in this scenario as well, sadly.

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throwaway7891236j t1_j970eul wrote

happened last year too, with the central park owl. don't know why there isn't a movement for safer pest extermination by liberals...why do they think shit that kills rats and cockroaches don't make other animals and humans ill ?

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orangejuicecake t1_j971ag7 wrote

because liberals vote for eric adams

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throwaway7891236j t1_j97l2n1 wrote

profoundly confused how i got down voted for asking a question about safer pest control

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SlowerThanTurtleInPB t1_j98fmeh wrote

Likely because safer pest control isn’t, or at least shouldn’t be, a partisan issue. Why call out liberals?

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throwaway7891236j t1_j98ltj3 wrote

bc this is an extremely liberal city

edit: and bc it seems totally in line w liberal values, whereas conservatives for example, sometimes don't give a shit about the environment

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orangejuicecake t1_j99prc8 wrote

because the past mayors have been voted in by liberals so they administer liberal values like voting in mayors that elect executives of departments that poison pests with chemicals that crawl up the food chain like DDT did

its not progressive

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pixel_of_moral_decay t1_j96et5l wrote

A zoo shouldn’t be allowed to give up on recapturing a non native species. That can have unexpected consequences on the environment.

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_Maxolotl t1_j96j5kb wrote

he doesn't have a mate. It'll be fine.

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pixel_of_moral_decay t1_j96jf5t wrote

Ecological disruptions can happen without breeding.

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aguafiestas t1_j98wd5d wrote

What kind of significant disruption could this one owl cause? Sure it's a bit bigger than the great horned owls native to the area, but is it really that meaningful of a difference in the grand scheme of things? For just one owl?

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javaavril t1_j97d6rd wrote

Eurasian eagle owls have mated with Snowy and Great horned owls before. It would be best to get him to his native environment.

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SockyNoob t1_j9sz0dn wrote

They can crossbreed with native owls lol

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BIGoleICEBERG t1_j96twdp wrote

Flaco, Breaker of Chains, first of his name.

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a3r0d7n4m1k t1_j973tx1 wrote

The plot of Madagascar but toned way tf down

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muchadoa t1_j991qs6 wrote

He’s only been free for a week or so. Give him time.

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Thunderwoodd t1_j95pgzq wrote

And that is how papa gained freedom

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RevWaldo t1_j966o1l wrote

Animal liberators: Holy shit, it worked!

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Sea_Consequence_7699 t1_j95s9b6 wrote

That's good news. Let him be. He will be fine.

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AsaKurai t1_j96w45l wrote

I hope he stays in Central Park. He’d be a cool permanent addition

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Bubbly_Experience694 t1_j96ibcf wrote

I walk across Central Park every day on my way to work. I was wondering why there were crowds of people staring into cameras pointed to the sky.

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SunnyinSunnyside t1_j98sywk wrote

Where exactly? Nighttime now and he's likely out

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Bubbly_Experience694 t1_j98t6a2 wrote

It’s during the day and it’s near the saxophone player. I guess it’s possible it’s just been some bird watchers seeing something else. Just not anything I’m used to seeing.

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muchadoa t1_j992g4g wrote

I’m way more invested in this story than I should be, and I see people worrying about Flaco eating poisoned rats that will kill him. Are rats just running around with rat poison in their system? If so, why do we keep feeding them poison? And what kind of monster rats do we have in this city that they can eat enough poison to kill a massive bird, but it doesn’t hurt them?

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rioht t1_j9eoplq wrote

Rats don't just eat poisoned bait and fall over. They die slowly through internal hemorrhaging over a week or so at most. That means they can have acquired multiple lethal doses of poison in their bloodstream via repeat feedings.

Also, due to how the way the law is structured, private landlords can perform self-extermination. A lot of them aren't very good at it.

It's a clusterfuck of problems.

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jdapper5 t1_j97d61t wrote

Finally lol. While we're at let all the other animals out of jail. It's called instinct - they know how to survive on their own! Fuck zoos & circuses. can't wait until the day they're banned for good

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BasedAlliance935 t1_j94yzd6 wrote

You sure that's a good idea? He's technically an invasive species to the local environment and could potentially generate a new subspecies should he ever mate with another owl

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scorr204 t1_j950zgo wrote

They probably assessed that risk and probably know a good deal more about it than you.

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___pa___ t1_j95nysy wrote

What would zookeepers, handlers and vets that have been working with this specific owl know about what to do? They really should be reading reddit if they want to know the right way to deal with this.

​

/s (but I assume not necessary...)

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SockyNoob t1_j9szcxb wrote

Strange how tons of people on Twitter who are in the field disagreed and a prominent New York bird watching account disabled replies because of it.

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BasedAlliance935 t1_j95199j wrote

You also have to consider that he was an animal living in captivity now out in the wild, wouldn't that negatively effect his chances at survival (especially considering nyc isn't really the most forrested city)

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scorr204 t1_j951eg2 wrote

No because if you have been following any of the news around him, he is finding an absolute abundance of prey in central park. If anything he might get overweight. Owls can live almost anywhere there are small critters.

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House_Boat_Mom t1_j95nos0 wrote

Who knew we just needed some owls to deal with these rats

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Aviri t1_j95nvzm wrote

But what will we do once the owl population explodes?

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House_Boat_Mom t1_j966vvz wrote

Nothing? Let them eat the rats and eventually there will be some natural balance.

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Lovis_Iovis t1_j95rxtc wrote

NYC already has native owls and hawks that eat rats. This eagle owl is a threat to those native rat killers. Eurasian eagle owls regularly kill and eat other birds of prey in their native range, and there is no reason to suspect it won’t do the same here.

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FernwehForLife t1_j962wjc wrote

This is not correct. There is a concern. If there wasn't, they wouldn't be attempting to retrieve the owl.

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FernwehForLife t1_j962ih0 wrote

You're correct. As someone with some insider info on the owl, there is certainly a concern. And the owl may be fine if it stays in the park, but it could be detrimental if it attempts to leave, not being used to a city environment.

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___pa___ t1_j95djkx wrote

I really do not think it was the zoo's idea. Some idiot vandalized the enclosure, he got out and the zoo has been trying to get him back. But they found out he can survive on his own and as the article states they will watch him and try to get him back if necessary, but I assume it it was easy he would be back. Not sure what else the zoo could do at this point.

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dempom t1_j95lsgg wrote

Non-native species are not necessarily invasive species.

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elizabeth-cooper t1_j95snzf wrote

These define an invasive species:

  1. They can survive a large variety of habitats or environmental conditions.

  2. They outcompete native species for resources like food and water.

  3. They often lack natural enemies (predators, competitors, and parasites) in their new habitat.

  4. They grow and reproduce rapidly.

https://ocean.si.edu/ocean-life/plants-algae/rough-reputation-are-invasive-species-all-bad

One single owl probably does not have the ability to do this but that doesn't mean it couldn't potentially be a concern.

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Lovis_Iovis t1_j95s3ea wrote

A non native apex predator released into any environment will impact that environment in negative ways.

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EdgeOrnery6679 t1_j95vl3a wrote

I mean hows a single owl going to impact the environment? Hes just eating mice, which practically has an unlimited population in this city, and their only natural predators are stray cats and the dozen or so hawks.

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Lovis_Iovis t1_j95yohj wrote

NYC already has native owls and hawks that eat rats (and far more than a dozen or so!) This eagle owl is a threat to those native rat killers. Eurasian eagle owls regularly kill and eat other birds of prey in their native range, and there is no reason to suspect it won’t do the same here.

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SockyNoob t1_j9sz6q8 wrote

Owls eat a lot more than rodents. Some eat entire birds.

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AnacharsisIV t1_j968jdq wrote

Central Park is itself not a natural development: every rock and blade of grass was placed there as opposed to being a piece of primordial Manhattan forest. And it's filled with invasive species like pigeons and rats already. As long as flaco stays in central park there's nothing for him to fuck up, really.

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Lovis_Iovis t1_j96gdnn wrote

Manhattan lies along the Atlantic Flyway, an important migratory route for hundreds of bird species. This route is ancient and ingrained into the DNA of these birds. Regardless of the nature of its construction, Central Park is one of the largest sections of stopover habitat along the urban part of this migratory route. Eurasian eagle owls like Flaco are indiscriminate predators that native birds in the US do not naturally have to deal with. A native great horned owl in Central Park is at risk of predation or injury by this owl, as are red tailed hawks.

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SockyNoob t1_j9sz44s wrote

Downvoted for telling the truth. NYC is full of some clowns I swear.

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