POLICE IN SPAIN are looking for a fare dodger who bit off part of the ear of a train conductor who asked to see his ticket.

The attack happened on a suburban commuter train in Barcelona in northeastern Spain on Saturday, a police spokesman said.

The suspect jumped from the train and disappeared before police arrived.

Police have created a composite sketch of the man based on descriptions from other passengers, a spokesman said.

The train conductor has undergone surgery to reconstruct his ear, a spokesman for state railway company Renfe said.