A TEAM of Forest tree surgeons brought along a 100-foot crane for a working visit to Bristol Zoo.

The task for Woolaston-based TrunkArb was to make safe a 75-feet tree in the heart of the lions enclosure.

The zoo’s two Asiatic lions, Kamran and Ketan, were taken to a separate part of the enclosure before the surgeons moved in.

TrunkArb boss Mark Harris said: “The job went brilliantly, like clockwork.”

The 100-year-old tree was dying and needed to be felled before it became unsafe.

Ex-Royal Marine Chris Barry was lifted to the top of the tree by the crane and, after securing himself, used a chain saw to bring it down in sections of around 10 feet.

He said: “It was cold and quite windy up at the top. Because of the wind, the long branches were like sails – but it was quite a straightforward job.”

The giant sections of trunk were cut up and taken away while the branches were made into chippings and spread in the enclosure.”

The zoo’s estates director, Tom Hedges, said: “We obviously wouldn’t remove a healthy tree but this one was on the way out and we needed to act before it became unsafe.

“After consulting with our local tree officer, we carefully planned the operation and it went without a hitch.”

While Chris’s job was straightforward, one of his colleagues had some unexpected company.

Jim Masters was taking some branches from a tree used by the zoo’s red pandas, one of the world’s most endangered species.

Mark said: “The red panda was supposed to have been removed before the work started but they couldn’t get it down from the top of the tree.

“It spent the time giving Jim the evil eye from the top of the tree.”