Bread ban for park ducks

The ducks will not touch the rafts of stale bread

Families in Middlesbrough are being asked not to bring bread to a park to feed the ducks.

The decision made by staff at Albert Park means the innocent pastime of a walk to the park to feed the ducks could be a thing of the past.

Staff say increasing amounts of bread are being given to the ducks and geese.

Lots gets left floating on the lake, leading to the growth of poisonous algae as well as making the water look and smell unpleasant.

Instead, visitors will now have to trade their bread in for packs of duck food from the visitors' centre.

Nutrient level

Stuart Johnston, park manager at the visitors' centre overlooking the lake in Albert Park, said: "We are trying to get the message across that feeding bread to the ducks is not necessarily a good thing.

"There is no harm in it in itself, but if you come back at the end of the day there are literally rafts of bread that the ducks won't touch.

"The bread will sink to the bottom, and will increase the nutrient level in the water, encouraging algae to grow.

"That can cause problems, and we would like to encourage people to exchange bread for food that is less environmentally damaging."