Pupils await new feathery additions to school family
PRIMARY school children are waiting patiently for a very special birth.
But this has nothing to do with the arrival of the Royal baby Charlotte - infants at St John The Evangelist are waiting for a family of ducklings to hatch from a nest in their playground. The mother duck chose a cosy spot underneath a slide in the infant playground to build a nest for her ducklings over the Easter holiday.
And with a four-week incubation period staff and students reckon that the ducklings will be making an appearance any day.
Caroline Waites, headteacher at the school, said: “We came back from Easter holidays and there she was.
“She built it when it was nice and quiet so she must have got a nasty shock when the children all arrived on Monday.
“But it doesn’t seem to bother her.
“She’s been sitting on them all day and then covers them over when she goes off to get food.”
She added: “It has been the talk of the school.
“We’ve used it as a bit of a project for the students and we’ve been learning a lot about ducks.
“Even big brothers and sisters have been coming over to have a look at the nest. “According to the RSPCA you can’t move nesting birds so we just have to sit and wait for it them to hatch.”
And the ducklings arrival can’t come too soon for the younger stu- dents at the Ivy Road school, who have been banned from playing on the slide for the duration of the duck’s stay.
And once hatched the children will face yet another wait as the family are expected to remain in the nest for about two weeks.
Caroline added: “They haven’t been able to use the slide for three weeks so they will be excited to get back on it. “I’m not sure what they are more excited about to be honest.” She added: “It’s not about the general election or Kate and Will’s baby - it’s all about the ducks here at the moment!”
All wild birds in England are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside and must not be disturbed.