Canada resident fined for runaway peacock

EDMONTON, Alberta, March 22 (UPI) -- A Canadian animal control officer in Edmonton, Alberta, said the owner of an escaped peacock has received a $500 ticket for owning the animal.

Officer Shayleen Belick said the owner of the female peacock, formally known as a peahen, was fined because the law prohibits Edmonton residents from owning such exotic animals, the Edmonton Journal reported Sunday.

"It is illegal to have that type of animal within city limits," Belick said.

Belick added the peacock's owner, whose identity was not released, was also told he would have to relocate the animal should it return.

A fire official said the man's peacock was nearly captured by firefighters Sunday.

"Apparently it can fly quite well," said Lt. Carolyn Manning at the fire dispatch center.

Belick would not confirm whether the resident whose peacock remains missing was also the owner of a large white peafowl that escaped its owner last summer in Edmonton.

That bird was eventually recaptured and currently resides in a sanctuary.