KAIST

On the morning of June 9, 2025, gentle activity stirred early around the KAIST campus duck pond. It was the day a special family of ducks—and two goslings—were to be released back into the pond after spending a month in a temporary shelter. One by one, the ducklings cautiously emerged from their box, waddling toward the water's edge and scanning their surroundings, followed closely by their mother.

< The landscape manager from the KAIST Facilities Team releases the ducks and goslings. >

The mother duck, once a rescued loner who couldn’t integrate with the flock, returned triumphantly as the head of a new family—caring for both ducklings and goslings. Students and faculty looked on quietly, welcoming them back and reflecting on their remarkable 10-month journey.

The story began in July 2024, as a student filed a report of spotting two ducklings wandering near the pond without a mother. Based on their soft down, flat beaks, and lack of fear around humans, it was presumed they had been abandoned. Professor Won Do Heo of the Department of Biological Sciences—affectionately known as the “Goose Dad”—and the KAIST Facilities Team quickly stepped in to rescue them. After about a month of care, the ducklings were released back into the pond.

< On June 9, the day of the release, KAIST President Kwang-Hyung Lee (left), the former “Goose Dad,” and Professor Won Do Heo (right), the current “Goose Dad,” watched the flock as they freely wobbled about. >

At first, the ducklings seemed to adapt, but they started distancing themselves from the established goose flock. One eventually disappeared, and the remaining duckling was found injured by the pond during winter. Although KAIST typically avoids making human interference in the natural ecosystem, an exception was made to save the young duck’s life. It was put under the care of Professor Heo and the Facilities Team to regain its health within a month.

In the spring, the healed duck began laying eggs. Professor Heo supported the process by adjusting its diet, avoiding further intervention. On Children’s Day, May 5, the duck’s eggs hatched. The once-isolated duck had become a mother. Ten days later, on May 15, four goslings also hatched from the resident goose flock. With new life flourishing, the pond was more vibrant than ever.

< Rescued baby goslings near the pond, alongside the duck family that took them in. The mother duck—once a vulnerable duckling herself—had grown strong enough to care for others in need. >

But just days later, the mother goose disappeared, and two goslings—still unable to swim—were found shivering by the pond. Dahyeon Byeon, a student from Seoul National University who came for a visit on that day, reported this upon sighting, prompting another rescue. The vulnerable goslings were brought to the shelter to stay with the duck family.

Initially, the interspecies cohabitation was uneasy. But the mother duck did not reject the goslings. Slowly, they began to eat and sleep together, forming a new kind of family. After a month, they were released together into the pond—and to everyone’s surprise, the existing goose flock accepted both the goslings and the duck family.

< A peaceful moment for the duck family. The baby goslings naturally followed the mother duck. >

It took ten months for this family to return. From abandonment and injury to healing, birth, and unexpected bonds, this was more than a story of survival. It was a journey of transformation. The duck family’s ten-month saga is a quiet miracle—written in small moments of crisis, care, and connection—and a lasting memory on the KAIST campus.

< The resident goose flock at KAIST’s pond naturally accepted the returning duck and goslings as part of their group. >