Owl raises a duckling after mistaking egg for one of its own

It’s a case of mistaken identity.

A screech owl has raised a yellow-and-black duckling after mistaking its egg as its own.

Laurie Wolf, an amateur photographer from the US state of Florida, spotted the unlikely duo poking their heads out of a bird box in her yard.

"The two of them were just sitting there side by side. It's not believable. It's not believable to me to this day,” the wildlife artist told National Geographic.

Worried for the safety of the chick, she contacted a wildlife expert and a local sanctuary agreed to care for the duckling if she could catch it.

But just as she was about to step in, the wood duck chick flew out of the box towards a nearby pond.

“A bit later, the baby duck was in the hole by itself, calling for the parents,” Wolf wrote on Facebook.

“We believe they heard each other because it suddenly left the box and made a beeline for the back fence and our neighbour's pond where the woodies have been hanging out.”