A swan mourning the death of its companion on a high-speed railway line in Germany had to be rescued by emergency services.
The bird was seen blocking the line near Fuldatal in central Germany.
Earlier in December, it had been one of two swans to venture onto the line. Its companion is thought to have died after getting caught in a live overhead line, police said.
“Its mourning companion was still sitting in the dangerous area of the tracks,” police added in a statement.
Several attempts to lure the bird out of the danger zone were unsuccessful and the high-speed line was temporarily closed to traffic. The authorities say that 23 trains were delayed by around 50 minutes due to the rescue operation on December 23.
“The fire brigade from Fuldatal had to come to lift the swan from the tracks with special equipment,” the police added.
The swan survived unharmed and was later released by authorities onto the River Fulda.
