Duck, duck, CAR! Driver runs over mother bird and her ducklings as they cross a road – but miraculously they all survive
- Parent duck flaps into the air before collecting together her 11 unhurt young
- They had been waddling across a six-lane highway in Fort Worth, Texas
- People running over ducks could be charged with aggravated animal cruelty
A mother duck and her eleven ducklings had a very lucky escape after they were run over by a motorist while crossing a highway.
Footage shows the shocked parent bird flap into the air as the vehicle mows over her brood in Fort Worth, Texas, before gathering up her unhurt ducklings and continuing with the perilous crossing.
A bystander can be heard shouting moments before the car hits: ‘Mother duck, where’s your yellow safety vest?’
A white Muscovy duck and her family of 11 ducklings were run over by a black 4×4 as they tried to cross a six-lane road in Fort Knox, Texas
The video, filmed on May 3, shows the white Muscovy duck calmly leading her chicks into an empty six-lane highway.
She leisurely waddles forwards, the youngsters following in a line, before leaping up in shock as a black 4×4 zooms over the family group in the second lane.
A woman screams in the background as she spots the possible tragedy unfold.
A shocked bystander said: ‘Oh my gosh. I can’t believe none of them got…’
A witness said: ‘Mama duck and her ducklings serve us a double reminder that sometimes we need to pause and slow down for a moment to take in our surroundings.’
Miraculously, all the ducklings survived the terrifying incident. In the video, a woman can be heard screaming in the background
A bystander is heard shouting to the mother duck as she crosses the road: ‘Where’s your yellow safety vest?’
James Clairmont, 56, was charged with animal cruelty last year after witnesses saw him running over ducklings in Florida
Drivers can face animal cruelty charges for running over ducklings, which can carry a penalty of up to five years in jail.
James Clairmont, 56, was held by police after he was accused of intentionally running over a family of ducklings playing in a puddle in the road in Largo, Florida.
Heartbroken witnesses said Clairmont initially slowed down before accelerating at the group of 11 youngsters and their mother in August last year.
Two of the ducklings reportedly died at the scene and one was rushed to a nearby animal hospital to be treated for broken bones.
Clairmont paid a $5,000 bond before he was released from Pinellas County Jail.
A UK bus driver was slammed after they ran over a mother and her nine chicks walking across the road in Newquay, Cornwall, in 2010.
Mother-of-two Anne-Marie Bradshaw said at least two of the ducklings were killed in the collision.
Western Greyhound, which ran the bus, said the driver could not have avoided striking the young family.