A man drove his quad bike into a tree as he desperately attempted to flee a herd of attacking geese.

The victim, aged in his 60s, was set upon by the birds as he rode around the garden of a home in Horsham.

The man was left with a broken leg after he lost control of his bike and collided with a tree as he swerved to avoid the aggressive gaggle.

The Sussex Air Ambulance and South East Coast Ambulance (SECAmb) were called and the man was treated before being driven to Worthing Hospital.

A spokeswoman from the Sussex Ornithological Society said it is not unusual for geese to react in an aggressive way.

She said in the past they had been used as the bird equivalent of guard dogs, adding: “They can be quite fierce.

“They used to be used as guard dogs with some saying they were more effective than guard dogs.

“People use them to alert them to people coming onto their property and to protect their property.

“They will fly at people and peck them and they will fly around cackling.

“They can be very large.

“If they were protecting their young, as they are likely to be at this time of year, they would be especially vicious.”

A SECAmb spokesman confirmed they had attended an incident at a private address in Horsham. A Sussex Air Ambulance report described the incident, which took place at 9.55am on Thursday April 21, as “quad bike versus tree”.