A mother duck waited beside a New Zealand drain while an unlikely rescue team — a group of road workers — helped the ducklings that had fallen inside.
Here's what to know
Six to eight ducklings became trapped in a mud tank drain in Alexandra, in the Central Otago region, according to Radio New Zealand. Contractors from Fulton Hogan stepped in to retrieve the birds.
Alexandra resident Barbara Hall got a firsthand view of the rescue during a group bike ride.
"We were biking home along the rail trail and we saw these men with their heads down the drain, and mother duck was distressed," Hall told RNZ. "They were getting the ducklings out one by one."
More background
The ride from Clyde brought Hall's group to the rescue in Alexandra, an effort also captured in photos shared on social media.
RNZ reported that the mother had about a dozen ducklings with her after the rescue.
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What's being done?
The Fulton Hogan contractors reunited the rescued ducklings with their waiting family.
The cyclists kept an eye out for cars as the mother duck led her flock across the road, heading away after the ducklings were safely out of the drain.
The contractors earned Hall's praise for their determination to reach the trapped birds.
"Even one person was holding on to another person's legs as he went further down the drain. So they did a great job," she told RNZ.
Where can I learn more?
Other animals have needed help to get out of drains and tight spaces.
• Massachusetts crews brought a raccoon to a wildlife hospital while it was still stuck in a grate.
• In Tennessee, Goodwill workers heard cries for days before crews freed a trapped dog from a drainpipe.
• In Ontario, drivers spotted a raccoon trapped in a highway grate, and police helped free it.
• In England, rescuers freed a fox cub stuck inside a wastewater pipe.
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