The beautiful, rare bird that has been thrilling spectators at Prospect Park for nearly two weeks has avoided the clutches of a dangerous adversary — a cat on the prowl.
While thousands of people have come to the Brooklyn park to catch a glimpse of the male painted bunting — which has vibrant blue, green and orange features — a mischievous cat has been trying to catch the little tweety bird.
But on Wednesday morning, the black-and-white kitty was caught by Marty Woess, a wildlife expert with the Prospect Park Alliance.
“The cat looks a little embarrassed that it got caught, but it wasn’t harmed at all,” Rob Bate, the president of the Brooklyn Bird Club, told The Post.
Bate received a grainy image of the feline “stalker” on Sunday after a fellow birder snapped a photo of the fierce urban-jungle creature following the bird around.
“It actually made a run at it, but the bird took off,” Bate said.
He alerted park officials, who gave the OK to trap the cat on Monday.
After one failed attempt that ended in two captured raccoons, Woess found the tuxedo cat in the cage Wednesday morning.
The cat was taken to Sean Casey Animal Rescue, where it will be rehabbed and then put up for adoption.
“The cat doesn’t look feral so we’re hoping that it’ll just be friendly enough that we can just put it up for adoption,” Sean Casey said. “But if it needs some work, we’ll help it out.”
Birders have been concerned about the bunting’s well-being after The Post revealed that the elusive bird had touched down in Brooklyn on Nov. 29, making it the first male bunting to ever be spotted in the borough and only the 10th of its species seen in NYC.
Since then, people have gathered daily around the park’s Lefrak Center – which was designed to attract birds and provides ample food for them – to catch a glimpse of the multi-colored bird.
But late last week, park officials were forced to put ropes and a sign that says “Please stay on the path” because people were stepping off to get a better shot of the birdie.
“People just want to get a little closer,” Bate said. “It’s inevitable, but they need to be careful.”
The bunting was seen Monday feeding on seeds and flying as close as 15 feet to a group of people taking photos, seemingly embracing all the attention.
“He seems to have gotten used to people,” Bate said.
The city’s feathered friend could stick around through the winter if temperatures stay mild, or continue south to his native Florida.