In one of the more bizarre animal automotive rescues we've seen, a Texas mechanic freed a red-tailed hawk from the grille of a Lexus it was jammed into after a high-speed highway collision. The result? "Grille Hawk" — the most adorable photo of a hawk ever.
Red-tailed hawks have adapted well to humans and urban environments, but there are still collisions between the birds and moving vehicles. This time, however, the bird lived thanks to careful work by Matt Whitehead, a local Lexus mechanic.
When the upscale Toyota pulled into the service bay, no one expected the hawk to be alive, as it was completely motionless. It was while Whitehead was removing the grille when he saw the bird blink, and he realized the bird was indeed alive. He managed to get the bird out from the SUV, but it couldn't quite fly, so Whitehead took the bird to the vet.
There, Greg Moore looked after the hawk and, seeing that nothing was broken, figured that it may soon fly again. Thanks go to Whitehead and the other Lexus mechanics for saving this red-tail. Moore himself said that "They did a good job - handled the bird well." Whitehead said that he was happy just to do some good for an animal. He called the whole ordeal "definitely extraordinary…I wish that every day would end that happy."
Click through the gallery to see the extrication and the most adorable result ever.
Photo Credit: Courtesy/KVUE
Photo Credit: Courtesy/KVUE
Photo Credit: Courtesy/KVUE
Photo Credit: Courtesy/KVUE