It's surprising how fast young ducklings can swim once they get beyond the 'toddler' stage.

I got amused by several young ducklings zooming around in the stream at incredible high speeds - like these two - and I could never work out how in God's name they can get up to such a high rate of knots. Reminds me of jet-skis.

As they grow into young ducks, they lose this ability completely and just paddle along, slowly but determinedly, their little orange or beige webbies visible rhythmically churning under the surface of the wai steadily pushing them on ahead. From the back, especially when they're changing course, weaving from port to starboard and back again, they remind me of little tugboats from the beam end.

So these two little boy racers, and others like them, must have some special ability for some reason to paddle their little flipper-feet back and forward at a phenomenal rate ! I'd love to see an underwater shot but it would be hard to keep them in the viewfinder.