Bald eagle escapes from Gladys Porter Zoo

A lookout was placed Friday for one of two bald eagles that absconded from an aviary's netting the day before at the Gladys Porter Zoo in Brownsville.

This month marked the female eagle's third anniversary at the zoo.

The eagle, about three-feet tall, has a white head and tail, a dark chocolate brown body and a yellowish beak, General Curator Colette Adams said.

The eagle has a wingspan of 71 to 90 inches and weighs approximately 10 pounds, because its bones are hollow.

The eagle has an old injury to its left wing, is missing its right eye and cannot survive in the wild. It arrived at the zoo in October 2005.

"When we got it, it was a fairly decent flyer, but it needs extraordinary binocular vision to hunt," Adams said.

"We're not exactly sure where it is," zoo spokeswoman Cynthia Garza Galvan said. "We need the public's help."

The eagle was spotted at approximately 1:30 p.m. Thursday near the Boys and Girls Club.

Zookeepers went to the area and saw the eagle sitting on the roof of a house at 8th and Polk Streets. However, the bird left the rooftop and its direction could not be ascertained. "It is not an experienced flyer," Adams said.

"People in the neighborhood could not have been nicer," Adams said. "They helped us look under their houses, they were walking up and down the streets. We never got another eyeball on the bird."

Staff was hoping that the eagle would have returned because it is on a feeding schedule.

"It hasn't as of yet," Galvan said early Friday.

"We thought he would be hungry and drop by someone's clothesline and that didn't happen," Adams said.

Adams cautions residents not to attempt to catch or chase the eagle. Also, zoo officials warn residents to keep children and pets away from the eagle.

"Eagles have huge talons and they can use them very effectively. We need it right where it is," Adams said.

The fear is that a car could hit it, and Galvan urged residents to be on the lookout with their "eagle eyes."

"(If it is spotted) it is very important not to startle it," Galvan said. "Stay in your home and quietly call the zoo."

To report a sighting, call (956) 453-6199 or (956) 372-6448.