A BUZZARD that fell victim to stormy South Lakeland weather is on the mend after he was saved from a potentially fatal fate by a dramatic rescue effort, reports Ruth Lythe.

During the recent gales, the male, adult buzzard became caught by his wing, between two trees at Fisher Tarn, near Kendal, and was left hanging upside down for about three days.

The creature might have met an awful end by dehydration or hypothermia, if it had not been for the heroic efforts of Fred Gould from Kendal.

Following a tip-off from a friend who fishes at the tarn and saw the bird's plight, Mr Gould, 67, climbed ten feet up a tree, in the dark to set the hapless buzzard free.

"I had to scamper along a branch to get to the bird, which wasn't very happy. He must have been roosting when the entire tree next to him blew down, wedging him by his wing. He must have been hanging for about three days by the time I got to him.

"He was very light, when I took hold of him and he wasn't all that strong. He wasn't fighting although I did have some strong leather gloves on as a precaution," said Mr Gould.

The bird was then put in the capable hands of birds of prey expert Nick Henderson, who has been caring for the creature at the Corio Raptor Care and Rehabilitation Centre at High Bentham.

Mr Henderson said: "The buzzard was very grouchy and thin when he was brought in and had lost a third of his normal body weight. That wasn't down to the lack of food, it was because they dehydrate very quickly. We got a vet to check him out and we put some fluids into him but it was really touch and go for a while."

Happily, the bird is now feeding himself. He is virtually uninjured by the ordeal, although Mr Henderson suspects his wing muscles have been slightly damaged.

An unusual physiotherapy session involving holding the buzzard while it flaps its wings, is now planned, to prepare the bird for release. He will be set free by Mr Gould.

Buzzards are one of Britain's most common daytime hunters but used to be persecuted by farmers, who believed the birds would kill game. During the foot-and-mouth crisis, when much of the countryside was closed off, and buzzards were undisturbed, the population increased dramatically "They are quite cowardly birds, they prefer to kill rabbits or small mammals rather than bigger prey," explained Mr Henderson.

The bad weather has meant that the Corio Raptor Centre has been inundated with injured birds of prey and Mr Henderson offered the following advice to anyone who comes across one: "It is very important to watch out for the talons, which are very sharp and can cut to the bone. Instead, wrap the bird up in a coat or a towel to calm it down and then call a vet."

For more information about birds of prey, call the Corio Raptor Care and Rehabilitation Centre on 01524-263482.