HARLEM, NY — Harlem's famous one-antlered deer, "Lefty," died Friday as he awaited relocation upstate, according to a spokesman for the NYC Mayor's Office. (For breaking updates on Harlem's one-antlered deer, and to receive more local news in your inbox each morning, sign up for the Harlem Patch newsletter.)

"Sad news," Eric Phillips, the mayor's spokesman, said Friday afternoon. "While under the stress of captivity & while awaiting potential transport upstate by state [Department of Environmental Conservation], the Harlem deer has died." The DEC shot back with the following statement: "We offered yesterday to take possession of the deer and transport it to a suitable habitat. The City did not accept our offer until just before noon, and while we were arriving on scene the deer died in the City's possession."

<span id="selection-marker-1" class="redactor-selection-marker"></span> City and state officials had been squabbling overnight and and through the morning over what to do with Harlem's one-antlered deer, who made Jackie Robinson Park his second home for the majority of December and who was captured Thursday after vaulting a fence into the nearby Polo Grounds Towers public housing development.

The deer likely swam his way to Manhattan in search of food or a mate, the city said, but decided to stay in Jackie Robinson Park once locals started to feed it (against official advice).

The city sentenced Lefty to euthanasia as soon as he was caught.

Soon after, though, state officials intervened, saying they would spare no expense to relocate the deer upstate — despite state regulations that prohibit the movement of deer beyond county lines, except for scientific purposes.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo released an unprovoked statement Thursday night offering to relocate the deer — a break from policy. State environmental regulations prevent deer from being transported across county lines, as they often do not survive relocation to a new habitat.



.@NYSDEC:We want to do everything we can to save the Harlem deer. We have told the city that the feds or we can transport it upstate today.

— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) December 16, 2016 "There are alternatives to euthanasia that they can consider, including relocation," a Cuomo spokesperson said Thursday. "The City has now captured the deer, and Governor Cuomo has directed DEC to offer assistance to the City to transport and find a new habitat for it immediately." Despite Cuomo's efforts, city officials reiterated Friday morning that euthanizing the deer was the only humane option.