Collapsed owl saved by soldiers 70 miles out at sea

A barn owl was rescued by a group of soldiers after it was seen struggling 70 miles from shore.

After falling into the sea on several occasions, the bird "collapsed" on a boat filled with members of the British Army taking part in a race around Britain and Ireland.

The crew looked after it until the Caister Independent Lifeboat met the soldiers off the Norfolk coast and transported the owl to land.

Mark Petherbridge, a member of the Army Offshore Racing Team, said: "It's been a tough 24 hours for him; it's not the most comfortable boat to be on, but he's doing well, and hopefully he gets the help he needs now."

The army crew named him Little Reg, short for regiment - after the parachute group Petherbridge is a member of.

He said: "We saw it behind the boat; it came alongside and was sort of clearly tired.

"It flew alongside and was trying to find a place to land and get on board. He fell in the water a couple of times and eventually collapsed on deck, so we picked him up and put him in a box."

The Army team praised Little Reg for showing a "real will and tenacity to survive".

After handing over their extra crew member, the team went on to complete in the Royal Ocean Racing Club's race around Britain and Ireland.

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James Stannard, a conservation officer for the Barn Owl Trust, said he received a call about the bird at about 11:00 BST on Wednesday and rallied round services, including the lifeboat service, to get the bird safely back to shore.

He said: "No one in the team has had a call like that... [it's] a very rare one, and what was really refreshing was how everyone I spoke to was just so invested in getting the owl safely back to shore."

He believed the bird may have been roosting on a fishing vessel before being taken out to sea, but said it was "nothing short of a miracle" that he found the Army vessel.

There were only ration packs on board the boat, and Stannard said the bird might not have survived if it had not been taken to land.

Dan Goldsmith of the Marine and Wildlife Rescue said Little Reg would be assessed by a vet once at East Winch Wildlife Centre in King's Lynn and hoped he would be back in the wild as soon as possible.

He said: "It will be dehydrated, run down, quite thin. We've got to get it there as quickly as we can, get it to the vet to assess it, and, all going well, it will make a full recovery.

"It's very unusual... barn owls shouldn't be 70 miles off Newcastle."

He praised the British Soldier, and said they had been "amazing".

Paul Garrod, chairman and crew member of the Caister lifeboat, said the callout was a "little bit different", but they were more than willing to help.

"It's brilliant, and it's all worked out well," he said.

"We don't just rescue people. We've done dogs before, a horse before, seals, all sorts. We're all living creatures, and it's nice to help the little owl on his way."

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