A BADLY injured gull which got caught by three fishing hooks has made a miraculous recovery after receiving treatment at Secret World Wildlife Rescue.

When the juvenile gull arrived at the East Huntspill wildlife centre it had three hooks in its foot, mouth and wing.

The charity's animal carers removed the hooks from its wing and foot but the gull had to make a trip to a vets to get the hook out of its mouth.

The gull was released into the wild last week by Secret World volunteer Graham Hardes after a period of rehabilitation at Secret World.

Graham said the injured gull was lucky to survive.

"When the gull arrived at the centre, things didn’t look good for him," Graham said.

"But, with the care and attention from our team, as well as the gull’s determination to survive, it’s made a great recovery.

“When we released the gull last week it was lovely to see it flying free again.

"Releasing animals back into the wild is the highlight of my job.

"Stories like this makes our hard work worthwhile, and it’s the reason that we do what we do."

Graham said fishing hooks are dangerous to birds and is urging residents to take care when using them.

“Fishing hooks, in the style and shape of a fish, are particularly dangerous to birds like gulls.

"They think they’re fish and attempt to eat them.

"To help keep our wildlife safe, we urge people to pick up any discarded fishing line or hooks and dispose of them accordingly.”

Last year, Secret World rescued 503 gulls.

The wildlife centre rescues more than 5,000 sick animals every year.

For advice or information on how to look after wild animals or if you would like to report injured wildlife call 01278 783 250.