Woman Finds Unique Hawk in the Sierra Foothills. It Turned Out to be a Escapee of the Fresno Zoo.

After more than a year on the run, Ripley the Harris Hawk is finally back home at the Fresno Chaffee Zoo.

Ripley went missing in April 2024 during the zoo’s Winged Wonders Bird Show, when a pair of territorial red-tailed hawks chased him out of Roeding Park. Despite dozens of daily calls from community members who thought they’d spotted him, Ripley remained elusive—until last month.

Twenty-five miles northeast of Fresno in the foothill town of Prather, a resident noticed a hawk with distinctive markings: a dark tail with white bands and a golden band on its leg. Zoo staff rushed to the scene and, after wading into a pond, were able to coax Ripley back.

“Remarkably, he recognized his caretakers,” the zoo said in a blog post. “After about 20 minutes of navigating his way down, Ripley flew directly to the team and was safely recovered.”

Since his return, Ripley has undergone veterinary checks and appears to be in fantastic health, with only minor concerns that are being addressed. For now, he’s separated from the other bird show animals while the zoo re-evaluates his training.

Whether Ripley ever returns to the Winged Wonders show will depend on his comfort level. But for now, the zoo says he seems happy to be back in familiar surroundings.

His year-long adventure remains a mystery—no one knows exactly how long he spent in the foothills or how he survived. What’s clear, though, is that Ripley has earned quite the reputation as one of Fresno’s most famous escapees.