(Image: @bites via Twitter)

A mother duck and her ducklings have once again made a home in Volunteer Park’s koi ponds. But city living is not without its challenges:

Without a sound, the heron took to the air, hopping straight up, spreading its wings and flexing its neck. It looked ready to dive. The onlookers spontaneously shouted at it, like an eager audience at a children’s theater: A young couple, who may or may not have been there on a date, shouted “NO!” in unison. An older man snapped, as if to a disobedient dog, “No, heron!” Someone else moaned “Go away!” Everyone had gathered to admire something adorable, but it seemed as though they were about to get a lesson in how casually brutal nature could be.

But then the mother duck sprang into action…

As was the case in 2010 when a mother duck and seven ducklings moved into the ponds, the 2013 ducklings will soon be on the move. Seattle Parks tells us the family is slated to be relocated. “We are moving them because the duck feces creates an ammonia situation in the pond that is lethal to the fish,” a Parks rep tells CHS. “We are working with the USDA Wildlife Services to escort them (momma and babies) to a habitat on Lake Washington.”

In 2010, the duckling round-up came at the end of July.