A proud mum with her brood.
I took this last year at Petersfield lake in Hampshire. I'm looking forward to the spring so that I can take a load more pictures. The bird life is very varied, and a lot of the species are breeding quite happily. This is a common mallard, but they are becoming a lot less common, as the females find some of the oreiental drakes quite irresistable. This had led to a lot of " mixed race " offspring.
So sweet <3
Here is a soon to be mum getting a bit of advice from the neighbour.
Awww, sweet <3
It always surprises me that they are able to raise their chicks safely in such an exposed home. The water barrier must help a bit, but there are a lot of rats and other predators that are able to swim.