A MOTHER duck and her seven newborns had a lucky escape after she decided to set up her nest on a Princes Street roof.

 

The dopey duck built her home under a conifer tree on top of Princes Street Mall, and was only spotted when she decided to parade her duckings through the Capital's busiest street.

 

But the stroll almost ended in tragedy when hungry seagulls swooped in and tried to snatch the babies for dinner.

 

Luckily Princes Mall staff were quickly on the scene to kick-start a rescue operation after the family was spotted by an eagle-eyed member of staff.

 

A security guard, the manager and a member of the cleaning team scrambled to protect the tiny duckings from the gulls above while they waited for the SSPCA to arrive.

 

The fluffy brood were later caught, bundled into a box and rehomed at a more duck-friendly location.

 

Hannah Park, manager at the Mall, said: "It's not something you would expect to see in the middle of Princes Street so we are all a bit shocked.

 

"We had team had a bit of scramble when the family decided to leap off a ledge and go running across the roof and into the street.

 

"The family were then rescued and taken off to their new home at Union Canal where there are plenty of ducks."

 

Donna Watson, head of marketing, added: "We first thought that the message about having ducklings on the roof had been lost in translation via the radios, so when the centre manager and I went up to check we couldn't not believe it when we saw the gorgeous little ducklings."

 

Scottish SPCA Ambulance Driver Emma Phillips said: "We are very used to rescuing them from strange locations but they must have been quite a site for everyone as they marched along by Princes Street."