Rise and Blog!

I normally wake early, even on my days off. I am a morning person were as John likes a lie in. It works well now that I have discovered the world of Blogs! I love to get up now have a nice cuppa and catch up with the Blogs I'm following, one of which had me nearly choking on my toasted teacake this morning! Heather, [ Takey Tezey Tales ] talking about Ballast and Poop had me laughing into my morning tea! Heather your an absolute tonic! Anyway back to this morning, eating said Teacake I heard the distinctive, Peep peep peep of a little lost Duckling looking for his Mum. Is it just me or does that noise make other boaters anxious? They are such tiny gorgeous little creatures that my heart goes out to them when they lose their Mum. They get a really rough deal anyway with all the dangers they face so to lose the safety of their Mum must fill them with fear. Last year around this time I was on the boat just after teatime and for a good fifteen minutes I could here this peep peep peep. I was willing the Mum of this little Duckling to find him. After about an hour of this peeping I went against all my instincts not to interfere and went to investigate. The poor little mite was trapped in the stretch of water between the tyres at the side of the boat. Circleing nearby were four Drakes who I knew could be quite nasty. I scooped up the little ball of fluff and took him inside. He was so tired he curled up in the palm of my hand tucked his head under his tiny little wing and promptly fell asleep. I was mesmerised watching him sleep only to jump out of my skin when a Duck loudly quacked outside the boat, before I knew it the Duckling woke and litrally sprung out of my hand and ran down the boat as fast as his little legs would carry him! I will never know if the Duck was his Mum but after gently plopping him back inthe water he happily followed her and brood of nine. I would have loved to have kept him, but he was better off with his own kind, I hope he survived. My real wish would be to see a yellow Duckling survive because in my five years of being on the cut, I have seen many little yellow balls of fluff but never seen them survive through the fluffy stage. Obviously the reason they don't survive is due to their bright yellow colour like a beacon advertising to all their predators where they are! Nature can be so cruel at times. If all the Ducklings did survive there wouldn't be any room for us lot!