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Missing moorhen

A moorhen has hatched a very large brood - perhaps too large. One seems too weak to make the journey back to the nest. The rest of the family returns to the nest, and eventually notice the missing chick. It's the father that goes to see what is wrong and tries to encourage the chick to find a different route. Meanwhile the mother stays at the nest to keep the other chicks warm. Eventually, the father tries to incubate the chick as though it were in the nest, but slowly struggle ceases and the chick dies. Sometimes even the most dedicated parenting is not enough.

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2 minutes

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