The owners of an owl at large have warned members of the public not to approach the giant bird of prey unless they have a big net.
Alfie, a Eurasian eagle owl, has been soaring through the city for the past 18 months.
The giant bird of prey escaped from his home in Lakenham in 2020 and since then sightings believed to have been Alfie have been reported across the city.
One woman, who lives in Carrow Road, even found the bird of prey perched on her balcony at 2am.
Now the owner of the bird - which has a wingspan of up to 6ft2ins - has revealed himself.
Peter Murphy lives in Lakenham and cares for many rare creatures.
He explained: "As soon as I saw him in the Evening News, I knew it was Alfie.
"The paper has been really useful in keeping me up-to-date about his whereabouts and I've been trying to catch him."
He added: "Alfie had been with me for around four years.
"He was given to me, I keep many owls and hawks, so I took him in as a rescue. He wasn’t in bad shape but the previous owner didn’t have the correct facilities to care for him."
And Peter has urged city folk not to try and catch the eagle owl - one of the largest breeds in the world - themselves.
Peter, who is a full-time dad, said: “Unless you have a very long net, do not put your hands anywhere near him.
"Once he grips into you the more you struggle the tighter it gets. It's unadvisable for anyone to put their hands anywhere near him.
“His talons are as long as your fingers so he is a very dangerous bird in the wrong hands."
He added: “Alfie can take off in any direction in the air.
"Luckily he has stuck to the riverside area as there's so much food for him in that area. In Norfolk he is a top predator so he has nothing to fear.”
Alfie lived in an aviary with other owls and went missing after somebody accidentally let him out.
“My other birds are imprint birds so they see me as one of them. I can let them out and they are able to fly free and they will stay nearby. Then they will come back to me when I call.
“But because Alfie is a rescue bird he isn’t trained in this way," Peter explained.
Peter added: “When he got out there was no sign of him until the next day when the first sighting of the infamous eagle owl surfaced.”
Peter and his partner Sam Murphy follow every sighting of their magnificent bird - who weighs around four kilograms - in the hopes of catching him so they can return him to his home.
However, Peter added, Alfie certainly isn't going hungry as there have been sightings of the bird with a pigeon or rabbit clutched in his talons.
Peter said: “It’s a struggle because for me it’s like losing a much-loved pet.
“But now after 18 months Alfie is determined as a wild bird.”
Peter added: “Nobody don’t need to worry about dogs, cats or little kids.
“If he saw your rabbit or guinea pig, he may try to get it but at the moment that’s not what he’s interested in because there is so much to catch in the area.”
Peter thinks that his beloved pet is in the derelict buildings in the riverside area, as there will be a plethora of rats and pigeons entering but no human traffic.
He added: “I just really miss him. I think if he saw me he'd fly straight back and sit on my arm."
If you regularly see Alfie, please contact Sam Murphy on Facebook to let her know.
Alternatively contact sophie.skyring@archant.co.uk
Eagle owl fact box:
Eurasian eagle owls are one of the largest living species of owls.
They were native to Britain until the latter part of the 19th century.
In the wild they are now found in the foothills of the Himalayan mountains and in north Africa.
Eagle owls will eat most things that move and enjoy rats, voles, rabbits, mice, foxes and hares.
But the birds have been known to eat other birds such as crows, ducks, seabirds and pigeons.
They have also been seen eating crabs, snakes, frogs and fish.
Their life expectancy in the wild is around 20 years, but in captivity these birds have been recorded to live to be 60 years old.
It is estimated that around 12 to 40 pairs of eagle owls live in the United Kingdom.
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