BOATERS bobbing down the River Thames are embracing safari-style animal spotting thanks to a mystery artist.

Visitors at Abingdon Lock will have to crane their necks to spot the newest carved creature on the riverbank - a towering wooden giraffe.

It appeared last week in the latest installation by the so-called 'River Banksy'; an anonymous wood carver who has left a menagerie of animals at the lock in the past year.

Lock volunteer Frank Jordan said: "It arrived in sections; we've been telling people it was in quarantine for a while. It had to be smuggled in under the cover of darkness. I should imagine it is about 14 foot tall - it's a giant."

He and his lock keeper colleague Richard Hawkins have named the giraffe Geraldine.

Mr Jordan, who lives in central Abingdon, said: "The reaction has been fantastic. People have heard about it and have been coming down to see her. We are going to put a sign up saying 'please do not feed the giraffe'."

The retired garage worker joked that the riverside was becoming 'a bit of a zoo', as other resident wood carvings include a lifesize crocodile, tortoise and rabbit.

The Abingdon Herald initially reported on River Banksy in August, and since then the mystery artist has also installed more than a dozen bird boxes as well as his pièce de résistance, Geraldine.

Mr Jordan said: "The plan is to get a little paper printed so people can tick off who they've spotted. It's marvellous for the children - they look up at it and their little mouths fall open. It's smashing.

"Sometimes if we live in Abingdon we can take the river for granted. This helps to jog people's memory and [encourages] people to come and say 'isn't this beautiful'. It makes people's visit that little bit nicer."

In March, Mr Jordan, a great-grandfather of one, was hailed for his work at the lock with a High Sheriff Award.

The dedicated volunteer said: "I'm proud to help at the lock with Richard [Hawkins]. Everything started with that man - he is the captain of our ship and we think the world of him."

But he stayed tight-lipped about the identity of River Banksy, describing him only as a 'man of mystery' and 'a very close friend of ours'.

Mr Jordan added: "Geraldine took him months [to complete] so he might take a little break. But once he sees a piece of wood and an idea comes into his head, we will hear the buzz of his chainsaw again."

Geraldine his picked herself a particularly safe spot thanks to the new defibrillator that was installed at the lock earlier this month.