Bald eagle missing after intruder vandalizes zoo enclosure

Tuesday, January 24, 2017, 2:15 PM - Officials from the Chippewa Park Wildlife Exhibit in Thunder Bay, Ont., are searching for a missing bald eagle after it escaped through a hole in its enclosure that was cut by an intruder last week.

It was on Jan. 19 when park staff noticed a perpetrator had broke the lock off the enclosure and made a hole in the fence where two eagles were living, according to CBC.

It's not known whether the missing eagle is male or female. However, its mate has been visibly distressed.

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"It's mate, who has been there all the time, it's constantly crying, trying to look for her mate, or him," Gordon John, the city's acting parks manager told CBC.

John suggests this was a rescue mission as the act appears to be "very deliberate."

The eagle has been in captivity its entire life and because of this, park officials fear for the bird's safety.

"It's not used to flying long distances so it will get very tired and when it is tired, it will probably land on the ground and then it's prey to coyotes or wolves or any other animal that's out there," John told the news agency.

Should anyone spot the eagle, they are advised to not approach the bird as it could be in distress. Instead the city is asking the public to call its 24-hour dispatch line at 807-625-2195.

"This is a sad day that somebody thinks they're doing something good but they've written a death certificate," John told CBC. "This bird probably won't survive."

SOURCE: CBC | Chippewa Park 

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