The park today was swarming with sun and water loving families today. I was out walking this evening when I spotted this duck and her babies in the swimming area of Gene Coulon Beach Park. I was out on the walkway watching from a distance as this momma took her brood to the beach. Sure enough, a young boy charged them and they quickly ran back into the water. She had to find another place to rest. I continued to walk the length of the walkway towards the beach, keeping an eye on them to see how she would handle the situation. I was back on the beach side when I saw her heading for the walkway where I was just standing. First, Momma duck came out of the water, and then I watched the tiny babies jump up one by one! Seeing that I could get a good shot of them without disturbing her, I walked back out onto the walkway. I slowed down as i got closer so I wouldn’t scare them off. I was pleasantly surprised to see her wings spread lightly over the brood as in the first image. She was quite calm for the most part. Then there were some more people, so she turned around, ‘upsetting the cart’ as it were. In the last image you can see the babies scrambling to get back under her protection. She did eventually settle down again, and all was right with the world.
Happy Mother’s Day