It’s been just over a month since Flaco the owl was pronounced dead following a fatal building collision on the Upper West Side. However, the results on the Eurasian Eagle Owl’s necropsy just came back and apparently Bronx Zoo veterinary pathologists detected additional critical factors in the bird’s death beyond the traumatic injuries.
Severe pigeon herpesvirus and exposure to four varieties of rodenticides were detected in Flaco, as a result of feeding on feral pigeons and freely flying around NYC. “These factors would have been debilitating and ultimately fatal, even without a traumatic injury, and may have predisposed him to flying into or falling from the building,” shared Central Park Zoo in a statement.
Other New York City pigeons and owls have been found to carry the same herpesvirus that was detected in Flaco. Though healthy pigeons may be a carrier, consumption of said pigeons could still be fatal to birds of prey. Flaco’s diet of pigeons ultimately led to severe tissue damage and inflammation in his organs, traveling from the spleen, to the liver, gastrointestinal tract, bone marrow, and brain.
Therefore, experts have declared that Flaco’s death was compounded by various factors including infectious disease, toxin exposures, and traumatic injuries.
Levels of DDE, a breakdown product of the banned pesticide DDT, was also found during toxicology testing. However, these traces were not deemed a contributing factor to the death of Flaco.
Find more from the necropsy here.