27/11/2025
"SOUND EXPLOSION" AND SHOCKWAVE – THE POWER OF THE MULTITUDE
How lucky we are to have four seasons – or at least three for sure! Here, the mild winter arrives on quiet wings with melodic cackling, just a subtle mood drifting above the plains turning rusty brown. At first, only a few flocks of wild geese, worrying for one another, appear in the fresh-smelling mist. Almost unnoticed.
Their risky journey did not begin now; they have already flown thousands of kilometres before they rest on the Hungarian plains.The truly lucky observers may even spot a few Red-breasted Geese or Lesser White-fronted Geese among the roughly half a million birds gathering nationwide. Most of them are Greater White-fronted Geese coming from distant Siberia, or Greylag Geese from southern Scandinavia and Silesia. In contrast, the Bean Geese, also known as Tundra Geese, have already changed their traditional migration route and now head west, along the shores of the Baltic Sea. Around here, we hardly meet them anymore.
But there are many that choose the Carpathian Basin, and some of them, in a truly unique way, roost at night right in the middle of a town, on Tata’s Old Lake.
In wetter years, like 2023, when the corn harvest was good, up to 67,000 individuals were present at the same time. Now, in November 2025, we count 46,000 birds at dawn on the shallow, drained fishpond. As long as there is food on the surrounding fields and stubble, they will stay.
After the long night, dawn is full of anticipation for us filmmakers as well. As the first light arrives, the bird islands on the lake slowly appear, and the calls, the movement and the sound of beating wings grow stronger and stronger. The moment is approaching – once you experience it, you will never forget. Perhaps the arrival of a hunting White-tailed Eagle, perhaps the noise becoming unbearable, perhaps a sudden flash of light or the sound of a distant gunshot triggers the irreversible: tens of thousands of geese take to the air. It is hard to describe what really happens. The beginning is almost like an explosion, and it feels as if a shockwave is spreading over the lake as the energy of thousands of birds adds up.
If you want to experience it in person, it is worth getting up early so that dawn finds you on the lakeshore.
Until then, we offer you a taste of this natural wonder, showing how “many geese win the winter” – following the command of survival.
/ B.F.
TATA WILD GOOSE FESTIVAL At the event on 29 November, telescopes along the shore, exciting talks in the tents and the all-day broadcast of Lúd FM will help you discover this spectacle.
Come and join us on 29 November at the shore of Tata’s Old Lake, experience the dawn “sound explosion” with us and immerse yourself in the sight of thousands of wild geese – at the lakeside, in the tents full of programmes and with Lúd FM on all day.
If you cannot be there in person, you will not miss out: thanks to the live camera placed in the middle of Tata’s Old Lake, you can watch the birds and the life of the lake 24 hours a day – the link is in this post.
Have you ever been to the Tata Wild Goose Festival, or is it still on your bucket list? Tell us in the comments what your experience was like, or what you are most looking forward to if you are planning to come for the first time.
