Lately, it has not been a good time to be a duck, especially if you are part of a public art sculpture.

Two ducks have gone missing within a month near the Rotary Splash Park. The bronze sculpture by Mike Dwyer is a ground-level display of a young boy feeding a duck while another waits anxiously behind the boy to be fed.

Sandi Thompson, chair of the Civic and Cultural Association’s Public Arts Committee, said the most recent disappearance was reported June 21 to the Sheriff’s Department. Three weeks earlier, the first duck went missing.

It is the second time since May 2010 that vandals have stolen the small ducks. The sculpture of the remaining child has been removed and stored to prevent any additional vandalism.

“We don’t want him to be stolen,” said Thompson.

During the Pokémon Go craze of a year ago, “Quackers” was a turned into a PokeStop. The result is that more people than usual have admired the sculpture.

“Quackers” is vulnerable to vandals because of its ground-level location near a parking lot, said Thompson.

The town insures the public arts collection. The replacement for the one duck in 2010 was $900, plus $50 shipping fee.

The public art collection consists of nearly 150 pieces of art. About 130 are sculptures, most of which are bronze, said Thompson.

The committee is reviewing the possibility of relocating the bronze statue, reinforcing its installation and elevating the piece.

Although not common, a few other art pieces in the town collection have been vandalized, tipped over and broken.

The most serious incident occurred when the “Infinity Ring” sculpture was removed from its base and thrown in Fountain Lake, said Thompson. The art was recovered and repaired.

Also, someone or a group of individuals removed the bust of an Indian maiden from its pedestal and tossed it into Fountain Lake. It, also, was found and repaired.