What's happening?

Flaco the Eurasian owl once lived in New YorkA city in the USA. It is in a state also called New York. 's Central ParkAn iconic large park in the heart of New York City. Zoo. But last year someone secretly cut open his cage, letting him free into the night.

Now he has died after flying into a building.

Flaco lived free in the city. He got to live in the wild, instead of being in a cage. Some think we can learn from Flaco how to be more free.

But others are not so sure. Up to 250,000 birds die in New York every year when they fly into buildings.

Others eat rats from the street. But these rats have often eaten poison left out by humans, which hurts the birds.

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And, as many people point out: Flaco did not choose to be free. A person made that choice for him.

Is freedom worth any price?

Yes! Life is about having the freedom to make your own choice. A life without freedom is not really lived at all.

No! It is not really helpful to die free. You are still dead. Flaco would have been much better off in the zoo where he would have been safe and well-fed.