A Vancouver resident called wildlife rescue last Sunday after spotting a mother duck and her nine ducklings on the ledge of the third floor patio at the Vancouver Police Department's Cambie Street headquarters.
Police responded to the call and officers determined the eggs were likely laid in the area of the rooftop vegetable garden and remained hidden under the watchful eye of the mother until it was time for them to fly the coop, according to a VPD press release.
Three officers who had just finished a day shift helped a wildlife rescue volunteer in corralling the ducklings and coaxing them into a box.
"The rescuers took the ducklings down to street level where the plan was to entice the mother duck off the patio. As hoped, the mother flew down and followed the wildlife volunteer and the box containing her ducklings toward False Creek," the release states. "As the parade made their way towards the water, police and the rescue volunteer stopped traffic, cyclists and the odd dog before the mother and her ducklings were reunited at the water’s edge where they were safely released."
