A man who lost part of his finger in a bar brawl walked out of the pub and down the street before he noticed it was gone, police said Monday.

"He didn't know it was missing until he left the (pub)," police Inspector Mark Kellert told The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper. "He was out on the street and realized there was blood on his hand, noticed his finger was missing, and went to hospital."

Security guards later found the severed finger "and a large amount of blood" in the pub's bathroom, New South Wales state police said in a statement.

The 42-year-old man, whose identity was not released, was being treated for his injuries. Police brought the severed finger to the hospital, but did not say whether it was being reattached.