Geese Take off!

I have been watching thousands of pink footed geese land on the hill behind my house. They arrive one squadron after another and land with such precision that they are evenly spaced on the hillside. Then there seem to be some that are appointed as look-outs while the others graze. They must devour large swathes of grass. The farmers have just sown their seed crops and they are not at all happy when they scavenge for seed in their fields.

So as I went out to stalk them I was torn between feeling like I was disturbing them and feeling that I was doing a good deed for the farmer. It is hard to get close to them as the look outs detect anyone approaching and once they honk their alarm call they seem to all rise in one mass with a thunderous roar of flapping wings and honking till they find another nearby spot to settle down for the night.

It is a glorious sight and sound and I always marvel that they know how to fly in a group and where it is they are going at any particular time of the year. I guess they will soon all head further north or maybe this is as far as they go - maybe someone out there will tell me - or I could stop being lazy and look it up on google!

The picture shows just a small section of them as they scattered in all directions!