A rescuer in northern Germany pulled an owl caught from a 131 ft (40 m) deep well in a dilapidated castle, after descending ropes.
A local heard the distressed eagle owl from the well on Saturday and alerted police.
The Bad Segeberg fire service pumped oxygen into the well and established a rappelling platform, after failing to attract the owl to a baited bag.
The young bird is now safely in the hands of a local bat sanctuary.
Bad Segeberg is a city north of Lübeck and is famous for the Kalkberg, a huge gypsum rock that is topped by the ruined medieval castle.
The eagle owl rescue involved a team of 12 firefighters, plus a six-member volunteer technical team and two employees from the nearby bat center, the fire service reported (in German).
They arrived at the bird just in time, while a probe went down to the well indicated that there was little air inside. They used a powerful light and a telescope to locate the owl, before sending a rescuer with a breathing apparatus.