Pom Poms
The moorhens who reside on the pond outside the Library of Doom have been busier than rabbits this year. Much to my surprise, I spotted two new chicks today, which would be their third brood this year. Armed with my newly-purchased digital camera, I stalked them as subtly as I could, but never managed to get both in shot. Here is one of them taking a stroll beside the pond:
And here, it/its sibling is having a swim:
In a few days, its legs and feathers will have grown out of all proportion to the rest of it, creating a pom pom on stilts. Then the black will fade, with a dull brown/grey taking over, as the moorchicks enter an adolescent phase that makes them look worryingly like velociraptors. Then it will grow, becoming ever more aggressive, chasing off blackbirds, seagulls and whatever else ventures near, eventually turning into a glossy black bird with a flash of red on its head. If only they could stay pom poms forever…
The Singing Librarian Talks 
Awwww … these definitely fall into the ‘so ugly they’re cute’ category. Is it actually bald or is that a trick of the light?
Cute! I’ve never seen moor hens. We have mud hens, but they don’t have pom poms.
No, it’s really bald at the moment. Not for long, though.
Today, I spotted five of them. Of course, I didn’t have my camera on me at the time – argh! They’ll probably turn into proper pom poms at the weekend.
Ahh. They are very cute…but they cannot hide their true nature for long!