Hawk escapes from Woodland Park Zoo, but may just be on vacation

Zookeepers in Seattle are on the look-out, after a red-tailed hawk flew the coop Friday afternoon.

“Gunnar” is a free-flying ambassador animal (an animal used to educate the public about the species), and during a training session, representatives from the Woodland Park Zoo say he found a perch outside zoo property.

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So as escapes go, it wasn’t a very far one. The zoo staff says he poses no threat to the nearby community, and they are currently trying to lure him back in to his training course using his favorite food and stuffed toys.

Gunnar has wandered off from the zoo before but always ends up coming back, so you don’t need to spend your weekend looking for him. It appears to be more of a vacation.

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A free-flying animal, Gunnar was hit by a car as a young bird in the wild. He was taken to a rehabilitation facility and recovered except for permanent blindness in his left eye. The accident left him unable to survive in the wild and so he’s made a home at Woodland Park Zoo since 2009.