An act of mallard-like chivalry caught on video has transformed Dustin Carrell from a friend of the web-footed into a Web folk hero. Animal lovers from as far as Wisconsin, Louisiana and Italy are praising the Lakewood police officer for safely leading a family of ducks across Highway 512 during the Monday morning commute.

A fan of the University of Oregon Ducks hailed him. A prosecutor in Snohomish County said the video “had our whole office clapping.”

The 28-year-old says he didn’t do anything special.

“I’m an animal lover,” he said Wednesday. “A lot of people associate police with protecting humans, but we also have a responsibility to protect animals.”

Carrell was off duty Monday and driving his patrol car back to the station. About 9 a.m., he noticed a car stopped on the westbound highway’s left lane near Interstate 5. Carrell saw a mama duck and about 10 ducklings near the median.

The other car drove off, and Carrell positioned his vehicle to shield the ducks. Eventually, the family began its trek across three lanes of traffic.

One duckling veered from the group, so Carrell set off his air horn, which sounds a lot like a quack. It made all the ducks sit and got the little one back in line, he said.

Carrell then got out of his car to escort them across the exit lane. With mama duck quacking at him, the group found its way safely into a ravine.

When it was done, Carrell dropped off his patrol car off and drove to Oregon with his wife and 7-month-old daughter to visit relatives.

He didn’t know he would become a Web sensation. A state Department of Transportation camera captured his good deed, and the video is now on the Internet.

Carrell said friends and family began calling, telling him about his newfound stardom. He checked the computer and found the video was on 20 or so Web sites.

By 5 p.m. Wednesday, the duck video had more than 98,000 views on www.liveleak.com.

Word also spread to Carrell’s colleagues at the Lakewood Police Department, which got about 25 e-mails from people thanking him, said Chief Bret Farrar.

“Just when I’ve about lost all faith in the human race, your officer has restored some of it with a simple act of kindness,” wrote a person named S. Burchardt from Portage, Wis.

The department plans to give Carrell a certificate of appreciation, along with some good-natured joshing.

Farrar said Carrell, who’s been with the department since December, has a new nickname: Ducky. A flier with a picture of ducks and a proposed motto for the department is also circulating around the station.

It reads: “We never duck our responsibilities!”

Brent Champaco: 253-597-8653

See the video

To watch the ducks, go to www.liveleak.com and search for “ducklings.”