Nine orphaned ducklings have been taken in by the city and a 10th remains on the loose after one of their siblings and likely their mother were stoned to death Sunday.

Jeff Brown, a city maintenance worker at Hoopes Park, said he has not seen the ducklings' mother since residents reported that four youths threw stones at the ducks.

"I saw her later that day and she was hurting bad," Brown said. "I thought she might make it, but we have not seen her since. She has never left her children's side, and I doubt she would just do that now."

The ducklings, which are between one and two weeks old, are still too young to fend for themselves, Brown said. As a result, Brown and his family spent four hours with the public's help Monday night corralling the ducklings and taking them to a makeshift nursery in a building attached to the back of the park clubhouse.

Brown still wants to catch the 10th duckling, which may be hiding in the tall grass surrounding the park's pond.

City Manager Mark Palesh said he and his daughter, Madeline, 11, and Brown's daughters, Alexis, 12, and Kate, 5, will take care of the ducklings until they are old enough to be released into the wild again.

Palesh said the public's support for the ducks has been amazing, and he wanted residents to know they're safe.

"I used to raise mallard ducks when I was younger," Palesh said. "(Madeline) will check in on them twice a day and make sure they get plenty of warmth, water and food. They will be released when they are about six months old. By then they can learn from the rest of the ducks."

Palesh said the city is still looking into the legal terminology that will go on park signs that will notify the public that it's illegal to endanger or kill the ducks.