A paramedic flew to the aid of what she believed was a collapsed woman – only to find it was a pigeon that needed tweetment.
Senior paramedic Rachel Lack was spitting feathers when she arrived at the Broadway, in Southall, to discover that the "bird" she had been called to help was the feathered kind.
Two cycle responders from St John Ambulance, who were providing medical cover at a nearby event, were also called to the scene at around 5.50pm on Sunday (April 12).
Ms Lack, of the London Ambulance Service (LAS), said: "When I arrived I saw three men and a woman standing around a pigeon.
“I asked if they had called an ambulance for the pigeon and they said they had.
“They were surprised to learn that the ambulance service is for humans not animals."
The LAS said a language barrier had led the call handler in its control room to believe the patient was a woman.
A little bird told director of operations, Jason Killens, about the incident when emergency planning officer Chris Hawkswell tweeted about it using the hashtag #birdgate.
Mr Killens said: "Fortunately incidents like this are very rare, but we'd still like to remind Londoners to use us wisely and contact our colleagues in the RSPCA for advice on animal welfare."
