(NBC News) — A fox breached an outdoor bird habitat this week at the Smithsonian National Zoo and killed 25 flamingos, officials said.

The incident at the Washington, D.C., zoo is a “devastating loss,” officials said in a statement.

Workers arrived Monday morning to find the dead flamingos and spotted the fox, which then escaped the habitat, the statement said.

In addition to the dozens of dead American flamingos, a Northern pintail duck was killed, and three more flamingos were injured, officials said.

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