The bird, a Eurasian eagle owl named Flaco, was reported missing around 8:30 p.m. Thursday after a stainless steel mesh surrounding its exhibit had been cut and vandalized, zoo officials said in a ...

The Times’s longtime literary critic says that like all great outlaw-heroes, the escaped Eurasian eagle-owl tapped into our desire to see an underdog claim his freedom.

The owl, who lives in the Central Park Zoo in Manhattan, was discovered missing around 8:30 p.m. Thursday after its exhibit was found vandalized. Zoo employees have eyes on the owl.