One Hertfordshire village has become the centre of national media attention this week, as a homeless hawk continue to terrorise residents, but how has this happened?
Months have gone by since the first sighting of a "rogue" Harris hawk in Flamstead.
A spokesperson for the zoo confirmed that it was not theirs but said in-house experts are able to assist the council or other organisations with the bird.
Since the beginning of March, villagers begun experiencing close encounters with the feathered (friend) - specifically "tall men".
In the last week more than "forty" residents have been attacked by the hawk, leaving some with injuries and cuts.
She described the incident as "terrifying" and believed it was a "huge hazard" to children and the community.
In the same week, a resident, who wished to remain anonymous, told The Herts Advertiser, that Flamstead School pupils were brought inside when the hawk was seen "circling" above the playground.
Markyate's Beechwood Park School offered its neighbouring village some assistance saying "no bird of prey" gets past its "eagle-eyed" pupils.
Initially, Herts police was not involved but swiftly became "aware" of the hawk working in tandem with the Independent Bird Registry to capture it.
"It may be that the bird was hand reared when a chick and is now coming into breeding condition so looking for a mate (a human)," they said.
"We have concluded that it is not because she is hungry. I would advise that residents do not feed her as I am told someone is, which prevents her coming to a falconer for food making it easier to recover her."
The spokesperson asked residents to refrain from "shooting" the bird.
Mainstream media caught wind of the aggressive hawk after resident Roy Lambden shared a video of his encounter with the BBC, as seen below:
Since then, numerous camera crews from ITV, BBC and Channel 5 - just to name a few - have descended upon the village to find out the latest.
A 91-year-old told the BBC he lost "two hats" during scuffles with the animal.
As always, the people of Flamstead have seen the funny side, with many posting parody's of "hawk protection" featuring different types of headwear.
Publican at the Three Blackbirds Rebecca Levene, said: "There’s a bit of time left to say goodbye, raise a glass of savvy b, and get rid of the hawk."
The Flamstead hawk even launched its own Facebook page, posting without opposable thumbs.
Read our full coverage below:
- 'Homeless' Harris Hawk terrorises Flamstead villagers
- Police join forces to capture dangerous Flamstead hawk
- Red kite cuts Flamstead villager's head in multiple attacks
- Parish council capturing Harris Hawk to 'protect' Flamstead
Another sighting was then reported, or so we thought, as villager Wayne Cockell said he was "convinced" another bird of prey had gone "rogue", attacking him and his sibling on multiple occasions.
The most recent incident occurred on Monday, March 10, when Wayne himself was struck from behind by what he believed to be a red kite.
"The bird hit me from behind with such force it knocked me over. I spun round and saw a red kite a few feet away from me."
In the latest update, Flamstead Parish Council sent a letter to villagers confirming a plan of action.
Experts were said to be "humanely" trapping the bird to protect the community.
"As you are aware, experts are working to humanely catch the Harris Hawk, in order to protect residents from injury," the statement read.
"A humane trapping or luring process is reliant on the bird being hungry. Therefore, it is important that it is not fed by residents or visitors."
"I am sure we all wish to avoid a lethal option of control," the statement added.
The body extended its gratitude to residents for their "cooperation and patience" with trapping efforts.
A falconer is currently working day, and night, to "lure the hawk" and "gain its trust" and is "very close" to securing it.
The council added: "For every step the falconer is taking forward to catch the hawk, people from in and around the area are interfering (and still feeding it!) and setting the catching process back."
Update:
Despite the best efforts of experts and villagers, the bird of prey may have to be put down.
"We are, sadly, getting close to the stage where we may have to euthanise the hawk," a statement said.
"The falconer has been extremely close to catching the hawk on a number of occasions; it has fed on the edge of the trap, for example.
"However, we are acutely aware that the hawk's attacking is becoming more regular and the area in which it is attacking has widened."
"The hawk is not as hungry as it has been and would not feed at all from the falconer last night, despite having done so over the past few evenings," the statement added.
"This was always going to be a long process, and by feeding the hawk, that process is now taking much longer than anticipated."
A poem has also been written about the Harris Hawk by resident Peter Bone, jovially highlighting its impact on Flamstead.
At the time of writing the hawk has still not been caught.
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