A MUM and her 14 baby ducklings halted traffic when they were personally escorted by a convoy of volunteers to a nearby pond.
It is thought the mallard ended up on Barley Mow Park caravan park in Uckfield because she wanted a safe place to make her nest away from predators.
But people were concerned she would be hurt if she tried to cross busy Eastbourne Road - dodging drains and navigating fences - with her massive brood of ducklings.
Adorable footage shows the line of ducklings following mum, under the watchful eye of residents and staff from East Sussex Wildlife Rescue and Ambulance Service (WRAS) at 8.30am on Friday.
Founder Trevor Weeks said: “Attempting to catch her and move her is risky as she could fly off, abandoning her young and leaving us with the job of hand rearing them, and no mum wants to be separated from their young, so we always when safe to do so, try to escort the mum and ducklings to safety.
“The traffic was only stopped for a very short period of time, and luckily this year she chose to move them on Good Friday, so the roads were quieter than normal.
“At first motorists were wondering what’s going on and started to get impatient and didn’t want to stop, but once they saw the mum and duckling a smile appeared on their faces, and they are happy to wait.
“You have to be careful you don’t force them in the wrong direction or take them to the wrong pond, because as soon as you have gone they are likely to up and walk to wherever they want to head to, and could still get run over.”
The mother duck hatched 15 ducklings on Thursday, but rescuers found of one the hatchlings behind a plant pot looking quite weak.
The struggling duckling was taken to the WRAS casualty centre in Lewes for care over the Easter Bank Holiday weekend.
Rescuers monitored the mother and the other ducklings all the way to the pond, to ensure they all stayed safe.
It is the second time rescuers have helped the mother mallard escort her babies across the road.
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