Singaporeans recently took to defending the fatherless Marina otters from the Bishan otters.

Well, that was not the only instance that exemplified Singapore's community caring for wildlife, because here's another.

A member of Nature Society (Singapore) Facebook, Heather Goessel, recalled a rescue of one White-Breasted Waterhen chick near Gardens by the Bay's dragonfly pond.

The incident happened on June 2 with the following photos that tell the story:

Goessel first observed this waterhen's unusual behaviour -- dashing back and forth on the boardwalk, and diving in and out of the water.

The waterhen, appeared to be very anxious, as it attempted to find its chick a few times but to no avail, despite hearing calls from the chick.

Goessel then spotted the inconspicuous new-born little black chick, looking barely a few days old, in the water underneath the boardwalk.

Goessel quickly searched for the staff on the ground for help to save the chick. One of them put on a wader and entered the eutrophicated-looking pond to rescue the little one. Another staff assisted with a net and a box to hold the chick in case it was hurt.

The chick appeared to be wet and exhausted.

Mummy waterhen had to coax its chick to follow, but the lttle one was just too worn-out to move from the boardwalk.

"Mum, another five minutes please."

Soon after, the mother and child went into the greens where they were less exposed to rest.

Here's a close up shot of this weary black chick that still looked quite different from its parent yeah?

There there, the waterhen sat on the little chick to keep it warm after preening it. Oh, papa waterhen was also nearby, according to Goessel who ensured the chick returned to its parents safely.

Happy reunion to this White-Breasted Waterhen family, thanks to kind-hearted people!

Just in case you're wondering, White-breasted Waterhens are rather common in nature sites of Singapore and they are pretty comfortable to forage in open.

You can easily see them strolling around in parks or reserves where there are sufficient greens around water sources.

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Top photo collage courtesy of Heather Goessel‎

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