Moorhen Chicks {One Year Pond Study Week 16}

This week’s visit to the pond became one of the most rewarding sessions in our one year pond study, thanks to a delightful, and unexpected, encounter with some moorhen chicks. Instead of the quiet banks we had seen on previous visits, we were greeted by tiny balls of black fluff exploring the world under the watchful eyes of their parents.

Check out our plans for a one year pond study!

For several days we had noticed the nest empty and the adult Moorhens going about their routines without any visible young. We assumed the eggs had either not hatched or that the brood had been lost. To our surprise, as we approached the water’s edge, a perfectly gorgeous, downy moorhen chick appeared on the bank, very much alive and alert.

Observing the Adult Moorhens and Chick Moorhens Up Close

In this post, we begin by assessing the pond and delving into the ecosystem of this particular pond. Of course, this included checking out all the animals, birds and insects found there, in addition to spending extra time looking at the pond birds to be found at ponds throughout the UK.

Because the moorhen chicks stayed on land throughout our visit, we had a rare chance to study the adults at close range—an unexpected gift for our ongoing one year pond study. Moorhens often escort their chicks onto land during the early days for warmth and protection, and this behaviour gave us front-row seats to observe:

If you’d like to learn more about the pollution we found at our pond, take a read of our pond pollution post. Oh, and we’ve also checked out the water in the pond and all it contains.

• Their remarkable feet—oversized, splayed, and strikingly yellow, perfectly adapted for balancing on floating vegetation
• Grooming behaviour, essential for maintaining waterproof feathers
• Cooling off in shallow water after brooding
• Protective displays, with the mother puffing herself up to appear larger when potential threats arose
• Navigation of the banks, responding immediately when chicks called
• Searching through irises, a favourite hiding and foraging space for chicks

Our goal was to carry out a study of how a tree changes over the year. This post is the very first Ash tree study we did. And our second tree related post looked at the link between ash trees and lichen (who knew?). We also checked out the varying fauna at the pond. For a bit of artistic fun, we took some bark rubbings and did some leaf hammering!

Moorhen Parenting in Action

One of the highlights of the day was watching the mother locate a calling chick deep among the tall irises. Moorhen chicks, though precocial and capable of walking and swimming soon after hatching, still rely heavily on their parents for food and warmth.

We’ve also carried out a comprehensive mallard duck study, in addition to helping a mallard who had injured himself vying for the attention of a miss mallard duck!

We watched the adult male arrive with beakfuls of food, carefully selected morsels offered tenderly to each waiting chick. This cooperative parenting is a hallmark of Moorhen behaviour and is a wonderful addition to our one year pond study, offering insight into how these birds increase the survival chance of late-season broods.

After feeding, one content little moorhen chick sprawled in a sunny patch, sunbathing with its comically oversized feet stretched out in full display. These intimate moments revealed so much about the species’ early development and behaviour patterns.

A Day of Unexpected Learning about Moorhen Chicks

Our own “little chick,” L10, was captivated by the unfolding interactions. This really was a living lesson far more vivid than anything we had planned. Although we intended to conduct our summer tree study, nature had other ideas. As we continue our one year pond study, we are learning to follow her lead. Some of the richest discoveries arrive unplanned, in their own perfect time.

One of our best times at the pond was when we headed down at night-time to see what was around once the sun had set. There have been other times when simply reflecting on its beauty is enough of a learning experience.

We did complete a small portion of our tree observations and plan to return to that project soon. But for now, the moorhen chicks have given us a memorable and fascinating chapter in our ongoing study of life at the pond.

Check out the two comparison pond studies we did. The first was comparing our little village pond to some larger managed ponds at the outskirts of our village and the second was comparing our little village pond to a huge (to us) loch close to where Gary grew up.