A wallaby that found itself stopping traffic after bounding across the Sydney Harbour Bridge and coming to rest at the Conservatorium of Music has been captured by police after a chase that lasted several hours.

An early riser, the male adult swamp wallaby was spotted bouncing along the Bridge at five in the morning. Keenly monitored by traffic controllers, it crossed from lane eight of the Bridge to lane one, taking the Cahill Expressway exit to Macquarie Street. The wallaby was finally apprehended near the Conservatorium of Music. Police believe it wandered over from a Cammeray golf course.

Animal welfare officers took the wallaby to Taronga Wildlife Hospital for a veterinary assessment, where it was determined it had received no significant injuries from its trip across the Bridge. It will soon be released near other swamp wallabies once it has been given the all-clear.