A newborn duckling which was rescued after falling through the grate of a storm drain has been reunited with its mother.
It had fallen more than 5ft (152cm) and was stuck on a pile of twigs and debris at a canal in Oldham.
The duckling was freed in a two-hour rescue operation carried out by RSPCA officers aided by an employee from a nearby ice cream parlour.
Mobile phone footage taken by an officer from the charity shows the moment the duckling was reunited with its mother and the rest of the family, with some onlookers said to have been moved to tears.
The incident happened at the Huddersfield Narrow Canal by Ward Lane, Diggle, on 9 April.
The RSPCA said animal rescue officer Lee Ferrans was unable to lift the grid to retrieve the duckling, which is thought to have been just a few days old.
He used an extendable pole to try to catch the duckling in a net, but it kept disappearing into a drain on one side.
Mr Ferrans said he was thankful to then have an offer of help from a staff member from Grandpa Green’s ice cream parlour.
“I unscrewed the top of the pole with the net and held it down on one side of the drain while she used another section to gently encourage the bird to go into the net,” said Mr Ferrans.
Together they managed to catch the duckling, which was uninjured, and to put it into a cardboard box while they located its family.
An RSPCA spokesperson said a customer at the ice cream parlour had said she had thought the duckling’s mother was further up the canal.
The mum was found, and appeared to instantly recognise the chirping coming from inside the box.
The duck swam straight towards the box, with the reunion captured on the RSPCA officer’s mobile phone.
Mr Ferrans said it was “a really lovely moment to see them all back together”.
“I’d especially like to thank the member of staff from Grandpa Greene’s who offered an extra pair of hands – I couldn’t have done it without her – and to all the people in the area who stopped and were concerned,” he added.
The RSPCA said the duckling may have been chased by a dog, and urged people to keep their pets on leads near wildlife, especially around rivers and canals during the current nesting season.
