Moorhenling: at speed!

First the good news: moorhenlings look even more amusing when they're running! Two of the moorhenlings decided that they needed to cross a little beach by Eagle Pond to get back to their usual shelter (I hope the other one was still hiding in there); the first chick (this one) pegged it across as fast as its little huge legs could take it. The second one ambled nonchalantly across, grazing as it went... The pace and desperation of the first one was quite dramatic! I find this picture quite amusing: I'd prefer it if it was crisper but the light wasn't great, and perhaps the blur adds a sense of how manic the chick seemed, and the pace at which it was travelling.

Sigh, now the sad and tragic news... Today really trampled the phrase "Nature, red in tooth and claw" into my mind.
Firstly, one of the eight goslings has a bent wing (a condition known as "angel wing" . Apparently this is caused by a bad diet: it is predominantly waterfowl fed by humans, particularly when fed bread, that develop the condition.). This is sad of itself, but not news to me. Today though, for the first time, the father has taken against it, and every time it approaches the group, the father chases it off very aggressively. The father is not chasing off any of the other goslings... It seems very sad.
Argh, but the moment (and discovery) that really got to me was going back to visit the brand new cootling and to see whether any of the other eggs had hatched; when I arrived the only thing in the coot nest was a heron.