A snow goose and barnacle goose get close together

It was such a lovely day I threw all my obligations and plans out of the window and drove over to Frampton Court. It is my go to place for peace and tranquility as well as somewhere to be very close to nature. The old estate welcomes people to enjoy their open spaces, which include meadows, woodlands and of course the lakes with their islands.

I walked from the village green past old farm cottages and into the parkland where I headed straight for the western side of the lake which is kept open so that animals and birds can walk straight down to the water’s edge in safety.

I spent about an hour and a half standing on a short promontory watching the birds and insects. Crested grebes, coots, terns, swans, mallards, oystercatchers, cormorants and many species of geese enjoy both the meadows and the water. I chatted to a fisherman in a small boat who said he was looking for signs of the carp, which he hoped to catch overnight. He said there were probably at least a hundred carp in the lake many of them very old and large.

Woodpeckers rattled loudly against tree trunks in the distance. Gulls circled high in the air. There were even a few martins already visiting. Many of the geese were pairing off and flying between the grassy meadows and the lake with loud calls announcing their intentions. One belligerent male swan constantly chased a female swan who wanted to be left completely alone and would have to fly away until the next bout of pestering.

I spotted the quite rare snow goose, which I’ve seen (I’m assuming it is the same one) at WWT Slimbridge on several occasions, flying onto one of the islands, where it might be about to nest. At one point it launched into flight from the water’s edge on the island, calling loudly and headed on a circuit of the lake with this barnacle goose in tow. I was pleased when it flew quite close to me and headed off to the meadows in front of the big house.