Stray seagull causes huge pile-up on Istanbul motorway

The seagull escaped unscathed

The pile-up injured one person and caused huge disruption (Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

A stray seagull ambling across a major motorway caused a nine-vehicle pile-up on a motoroway in Istanbul.

CCTV footage covering the D100 motorway in the Mecidiyeköy district of Istanbul shows the dramatic crash, in which one person was injured.

The video shows the bird - a small white dot in the footage - foolishly taking its time to cross the motorway as cars stream down it.

When it walks in front of one car, the driver slams on the brakes, causing another car to run into the back of it.

More cars collide with each other, before a string of rear-ended cars block two lanes of the motorway. The seagull can be seen making its escape just after the first car is hit, presumably shaken by the experience.

The collision occurred at around 7am on Wednesday morning. The road was shut to traffic for some time, causing rush hour disruption.

As reported by the Daily Sabah, a taxi driver, Ferhat Cirpma, was injured in the accident, and was quickly taken to the nearby Sisli Hamidiye Hospital.

It's a lesson to all drivers - if a small animal runs in front of your car on a busy motorway while other drivers are behind you, keep going.