AN INJURED jackdaw that found itself with its leg trapped in a tree was rescued by a fledgling firefighter on his first job.

The crow like bird, which has a distinctive silver hood and black feathers, was spotted by passers by in a field in Kingshill Road, Cryers Hill, High Wycombe, 'frantically' flapping and in distress.

A crew from High Wycome fire station were called out around 8pm last night.

New recruit Paul Bennett managed to successfully release the creature from the 30ft tree and bring it down the ladder to safety.

The fire crew think the bird was investigating a woodpecker hole drilled into a dead tree stump before it got its foot stuck in a long crack in the trunk and ended up suspended upside down for some time.

Crew Manager Barrie Ackerlay said: “The jackdaw had landed on a tree, had his leg trapped and some blood.

“We had a difficult ladder pitch in the middle of the field and firefighter Bennett up the ladder to rescue the bird from the tree.”

He used a chisel to spread the crack wide enough to release the bird’s leg.

Crew Manager Ackerlay said it was not even clear what it was to begin with.

“The people who saw it thought it was a bat at first, the way it was flapping,” he said. He said it was a successful start for the new fireman.

“It didn't take very long and it made all the people watching very happy and they were impressed that we came out to a help a distressed animal.”

Firefighters were only at the scene for about 15 minutes.

Some onlookers were thinking of attempting a rescue themselves so it had been a matter of safety.

Station Manager John Bull said: “This was an unusual incident which had the potential to cause injury to public-spirited local people who were trying to free the bird.”

The bird had broken a leg and was taken to a vet to be treated.