On my last visit to the pond, something felt different. Only one adult remained with the three tiny grebettes. At first, I didn’t notice anything unusual – until I realized the parent was feeding only one chick. The other two were shushed away, left waiting in vain.

Over the next few days, the scene became even more heartbreaking. Only one chick remained. I still wonder what happened to the other parent, and why nature chose this path. Watching the abandoned siblings being pecked and pushed aside was difficult.

Nature can be beautiful, but it is also brutally honest. In the end, the strongest chick survived – a harsh reminder of survival’s cost in the wild.