A mother and her 16 ducklings have been squatting on Trinity school's pond for a fortnight but still get in a flap about curious pupils wishing to sneak a peek at them.

Trinity school's party of birds include two drakes who decided to stay on school grounds after the duck they were with laid her eggs.

The wild family of trespassers were spotted making their escape into the thick of trees after the Guardian's photographer John Nunn attempted to snap them last Thursday, so this photograph comes courtesy of the school.

Trinity school's deputy head, Mike-Horrocks Taylor, said: "Its easy to spot them when they think no one's in the area.

"They were all sunning themselves on the lawn but when John came to take their picture they scarpered. The porters feed them every day. It's amazing they're still there. They tend to get dive-bombed by crows at different times of the year but there aren't any crows around.''

November 26, 2001 11:00