By CNBCTV18.com IST (Published)
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The bird had fled the Sedgwick county zoo in 2005 after keepers failed to clip its wings. The bird, now nicknamed Pink Floyd, has been seen living the life of a fugitive 700 miles to the south in Texas along the coast
An African flamingo, who also goes by No. 492 and now nicknamed Pink Floyd, has been seen living the life of a fugitive 700 miles to the south in Texas along the coast. The Coastal Fisheries division of Texas Parks and Wildlife confirmed that the African flamingo (identified by its leg band) was captured on a video shot on March 10 by an environmental activist near Port Lavaca, Texas, at Rhodes Point in Cox Bay.
It’s been 17 years since Pink Floyd escaped from the Sedgwick County Zoo in Kansas, US.
The wildlife agency officials identified the bird's leg band in the three-second video captured by David Foreman, a fishing guide. In the clip Pink Floyd is seen strutted by a flock of seabirds, unbothered by the crashing waves.
“Looks like Pink Floyd has returned from the ‘dark side of moon’,” the Texas Parks and Wildlife’s coastal fisheries team wrote in a Facebook post.
Earlier, the flamingo had been spotted on numerous occasions interacting with other wild flamingos, as per the wildlife authority, reported the NY Post.
The bird had fled the Sedgwick county zoo in 2005 after keepers failed to clip its wings. When the bird and other flamingos arrived at the zoo from Tanzania a few years earlier, the zoo staff chose not to clip its wings as it would be unethical to amputate since they were already adults. Instead, they just clipped a few feathers. Soon after in 2005 No. 492 and No. 397 flew the coop, New York Times reported.
Zoo officials believe that No. 492 travelled to the Gulf Coast, while its companion headed north. No. 392 has not been seen since August 2005. Pink Floyd, however, has been seen on multiple occasions in Wisconsin, Louisiana and Texas.
Zoo officials never made plans to recapture No. 492 despite the sightings, as there was no easy way to do it without disturbing other wildlife. According a Dailymail UK report, the officials were never able to determine the gender of No. 492. However, they estimate the bird is 27 years old and four to five feet tall. Usually, flamingos in the wild have a life expectancy of up to 30 years.
