An escaped peacock from the Bronx Zoo that spent Wednesday night and Thursday morning camping out in a tree in West Farms has returned back home, officials from the zoo say.
The bird, which locals had begun referring to as “Raul,” flew back onto Bronx Zoo grounds just after 11 a.m., according to the Wildlife Conservation Society.
“We had confidence in our knowledge of bird behavior to predict how he would behave if given the chance to do so without interference,” a spokesperson for WCS said.
Authorities say they received a call about the rogue animal around 8 p.m. Wednesday night, after it snapped at a passerby outside the confines of the zoo.
That person sustained only minor injuries and left the scene before FDNY personnel responded to the scene.
Max Pulsinelli, the Bronx Zoo’s executive director of communications, said there “are hundreds" of free roaming peafowl on the zoo grounds, and added that the animal is not typically considered dangerous.
“Peafowl are not dangerous. The Bronx Zoo has free roaming peafowl on its grounds which move through the park with guests on a daily basis,” a statement from the zoo reads. “Like many other animals, peafowl rely on a flight response when they feel threatened. But like any animal, when cornered, they may react and peck to protect themselves.”