Here's the moment little Noella, an injured bat rescued from a roadside on the Somerset-Devon border, was given a second chance after being released back into the wild last week.

The female adult Soprano Pipistrelle bat was spotted on the ground by eagle-eyed Highways England structural inspector George Webb on a routine inspection of the A303 Marsh junction underbridge just before Christmas.

George immediately enlisted the help of Leonardo Gubert, Highways England's senior ecologist in the South West, who collected the stricken bat – one of the smallest species in the country - and transferred her to the Mid Devon Bat Rescue Centre for assessment.

Christened Noella on account of her seasonal discovery, the bat was found to have suffered rib and wing injuries in the presumed fall from her bridge deck roost.

In a state of torpor in the lead-up to hibernation, Noella was initially given a specially prepared rehydration solution and once placed in a room with other bats, she began feeding within a day.

Now Leonardo has released Noella back into the wild and close to the habitat where she was first discovered. It is thought she may be pregnant too, and will now have the chance to find a home to give birth to her baby.

He said: "She really was in a poor state, it was nice to give her a second chance and it was pleasing to be able to release her back into the wild.

"Most bats are seasonal visitors to buildings, including highways infrastructure, and although they're unlikely to live in the same place all year round, they're creatures of habitat and loyal to their roosts so I released her close to the location she was found alongside the A303, and hopefully she'll find her way home and resettle."

Highways England works with a number of partner groups and agencies when animals are found alongside its road network, and the protection of wildlife species and their habitats is paramount in a lot of its work – from the planning of improvement and maintenance schemes to the design of major infrastructure projects.

Leonardo added: "When our modern road design, we include measures to help protect wildlife from live traffic as far as practicable, and our traffic officers are trained to handle and recover animals. We are always open to new technologies and innovations to help reduce the number of animals harmed on our network, and we undertake a lot of work to protect the habitats of bats and many other species."

For anyone who discovers an injured or grounded bat, the advice is to contact the National Bat Helpline on 0345 1300 228 or one of the 80 local bat groups across the country, such as the Mid Devon Bat Rescue Centre (07979 610452, 9am-6pm).

For anyone who does come across a bat requiring help, the Bat Conservation Trust offers the following guidelines:

- Using gloves or a cloth, place the bat in a box with small air holes

- Provide a cloth such as a tea towel for the bat to hide in

- Call the Bat Conservation Trust's out-of-hours helpline on 0345 1300 228