I enjoy walking in Bicclescombe Park in Ilfracombe to relax, but for wildlife it’s a battlefield with death lurking around every corner.

This morning I was delighted to see a mother duck with six tiny ducklings. They have a hard time. On some mornings we see duck feathers on the grass: someone has had a tasty meal overnight.

Then there’s seagulls. I spoke to our friendly park keeper who said that yesterday the mother had 12 ducklings. Someone decided to feed the ducks, which attracted the seagulls. One of them seized the only yellow duckling and flew up a tree. Our heroic park keeper banged a wheelbarrow against the tree to distract it and the seagull dropped the chick. It fell . . . right into the hands of our park keeper, who returned it to the water unscathed.

Sadly, there’s no yellow duckling this morning and half the fleet have gone since yesterday. As well as seagulls, we think there are badgers in the park and then there’s domestic cats.

If you think you’ve got a hard day, be thankful that you don’t walk into the jaws of a predator every time you turn a corner.