STAFF from the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust made a dramatic rescue when a Tawny owl became tangled in nylon wire a few minutes walk away from their own head office in York.

The beautiful creature was captured by the centre’s support service manager, Mike Hewitt, after two members of the public alerted them to its plight not far from their head office near the city's racecourse.

Mr Hewitt grabbed his gloves and a filing box from the office and set off to free the owl, which he then took back to the Trust.

It had most likely got caught up while hunting as it still had food around its mouth.

There was no evidence of a deliberate trap and it is thought that the nylon line - which had a three-inch nail attached to one end - had been thoughtlessly discarded.

After being examined at a local veterinary clinic, and with the help of RSPCA staff, it was established that the owl had no fractures and was in a generally good condition.

A period of rest and recuperation followed at the Ryedale Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre, where it was hoped that the owl would self-care via preening to improve its feathering.

The owl was released back into the wild at dusk - none the worse for its ordeal - around 72 hours later, in the area where it had been found.

Mike said: “ We’re really grateful to the two members of the public who thought to alert us to the owl in obvious distress.

"The RSPCA, Battle Flatts vets and the Ryedale Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre did a fantastic job and we were very pleased to play our part in the rescue.

"Thankfully, we witnessed a happy ending.”

Imogen Taylor of the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust said: “All being well, he or she is still out there happily hunting.”

If you find any injured wildlife yourself, please do not take it to your local Wildlife Trust office, but call the local RSPCA on 01904 654 949.