While we were sheltering under our umbrellas recently, dodging the puddles, someone remarked that it was 'nice weather for ducks'.
Which reminded me of this photo that I took several years ago in the car park of the Sage concert hall in Gateshead. These ducklings were about as far removed from their natural element as it was possible to be.
The mallard duck had nested on waste ground on the far side of the car park and led her ducklings all the way across. This kerb presented a bit of a challenge but with a lot of quacking from her and some help for anxious spectators they eventually overcame it. Then she led them down a steep bank, across another car park, down another steep bank and across a road, across a stretch of quayside and into the river Tyne.
In comparison, my journey into work through today's floods this morning should be a doddle!
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That must have seemed like climbing Everest for those ducks.
ReplyDeleteGlad they made it; but what a journey.
It would have made an epic movie Keith!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful and heart warming.
ReplyDeleteI was up at Tan Hill a couple of years ago, catching ducklings being blown away in a gale. I only caught three. The duck was not pleased with me. We popped them in a box by the fire and she joined them but was devoid of gratitude and remained a nasty bit of work.
Hi Adrian, must have been watching Daffy Duck cartoons!
ReplyDeleteWe enjoyed watching some ducklings leaping off the quay into the harbour water below at Whitby - a drop of 3 or 4 metres. Soft landing but some of them needed a bit of encouragement from mother duck!
ReplyDeleteMust be like jumping off the high divingboard in the swimming pool for the first time, snippa...
ReplyDeleteThe first time I saw a mother duck crossing the road with her ducklings on tow I was amazed of her level of control. With different quacks she seemed to tell them when to go and when to stop and she made it from the front garden of a house in front of the park to the park safely. So well behaved these chicks, as a human mum I am impressed!
ReplyDeleteme too Africa, it took more that a few quacks to bring our three kids into line!
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