Making due with what's around you

'Urbanized' wildlife has managed to adapt to its ever shrinking territory quite cleverly. Raccoons charm food right out of some home owners' hands. Skunks cheerfully waddle down alleys under the cover of dark getting to pick through the best trash this side of a landfill. Even skittish coyotes can find a plump house cat (sorry fluffy) from time to time as they succeed at the survival game in the human's arena.

This chilly wet and windy spring, the front brick planter of a local office building on *the* main intersection that runs right through New West has been turned into a nursery for a brood of Mallard ducklings and its attentative mama duck.

The locals - who've noticed either the ducklings or the endless line of people stopping to a. feed them. b. count them. c. take pictures with their cell phones. d. try and pick them up (not a good idea btw) - are buzzing with opinions, concerns, questions and plenty of suggestions of what 'we' should do with, or for them. Do we leave them alone? Do we box them up and relocate them? Where are the Wildlife People? We all want to make sure they're 'rescued' before harm comes to them!

They're cute and fuzzy. And seem to even be warming up to all the attention they're getting. The office staff in the building are keeping them supplied with fresh water in a silver cookie tin since there's no natural water supply in the planter. The little ducklings' needs are simple and they wedge themselves into the cookie tin and blissfully splash about under mom's watchful eye.

Best of luck to you little mama duck. You have adorable babies and we are all praying no harm comes to any of you for the duration of your stay with us in the "big bad city". // 6th&6th //