Long Boi: Search continues for York University's missing tall duck 'icon'

Long Boi came to fame in 2021 after featuring on US television and on BBC Radio 1

The search continues for a duck who has gone missing from a Yorkshire university after becoming a social media sensation due to his height.

Students at the University of York described the much-loved lofty bird, known as Long Boi, as an "icon".

He has been missing since last month and there have been calls for a statue in his honour if he is not found.

Zoe Duffin, who runs an Instagram account dedicated to Long Boi, said his disappearance was "quite worrying".

Some students have called for a statue in memory of Long Boi if he does not return to the campus

The mallard/Indian runner cross, who is 2ft 4ins (70cm) tall, is usually seen on the university's west campus, close to Derwent College, Ms Duffin said.

She would usually receive a few messages and pictures of the duck each week, but none had been sent since the middle of March, the 23-year-old added.

"We have got the university grounds team looking for him on their daily rounds, but they haven't seen him.

"He has lots of fans on campus. It's a claim to fame when people have a selfie with Long Boi."

Students traditionally try to get a graduation photo with the tall duck and some graduates had even got tattoos of the bird, Ms Duffin said.

Dylan Eveleigh said Long Boi had lots of fans on campus at the University of York

Third year University of York student Dylan Eveleigh said he expected a memorial vigil to be organised for Long Boi if he did not come back.

"You would know if you saw him. He looks like a bowling pin. Some people are fanatical about him," he said.

While there have been no further sightings of the celebrity duck since the last sighting on 22 April, there are currently plenty of ducklings on the campus lake.

"Maybe one of them could be the next Long Boi," Mr Eveleigh added.

Ducklings have recently hatched at the university grounds

Long Boi's age is unknown, but he is believed to be four or five years old.

His fame grew after he featured on James Corden's US talk show and Greg James's show on BBC Radio 1.

Student Alex Moore, feeding the birds on Campus West on Thursday with birdseed sold in the university's shop, said: "He is a bit of an icon. There should be a statue.

"It will be sad if he has gone, but lots of people are still hopeful.

"He would have lived a happy life. He's been well-fed and well-loved. He's a mascot really."

Alex Moore said during lockdown students enjoyed looking for Long Boi on their daily walks

Long Boi may be the most famous bird on campus, but he he is not the only celebrity bird on the lake at the University of York, according to second year students Hattie Wright and Tina Bangfors.

They recommended an Instagram account called Keeping Up With the Quackdashians which was dedicated to the different wildfowl on the lake.

Ms Bangfors said: "There's a little duck who looks like he's wearing a tuxedo.

"There is also Gerald the swan and Golden Girl [a yellow coloured mallard], who has not been seen for a while either. All of them look a bit different."

Meanwhile, Ms Wright said: "There's a lot of history with the ducks here, but everyone knows Long Boi."

Hattie Wright and Tina Bangfors said there were lots of social media accounts dedicated to the university's famous birds