Colchester High Woods Country Park welcomes new baby goats

Baby goats with luscious white and brown coats have been spotted mooching around in High Woods Country Park.

Pictures shared have shown the kids with their families roaming the fields around the park.

Eyes on - the baby goats are getting use to their surroundings (Image: Shiela Winwright)

Arriving last Wednesday, the new arrivals make it 34 goats in total – two billys, 12 nannies and 20 kids.

However, the number of goats at the country park will fluctuate throughout the seasons, depending on the growth of vegetation.

Looking on - one of the kids at the country park (Image: Shiela Winwright)

During the summer growth now, the site will have more goats than in other periods.

Their arrival is part of the ongoing Colchester Woodland and Biodiversity Project launched by the council alongside Legacy Grazing last year.

Legacy Grazing provides grazing to many of the region's top wildlife sites, delivering bespoke conservation grazing to managers of nature reserves and open spaces across Essex.

Grazing - The goats’ role is conservation-grazing of the area (Image: Shiela Winwright)

Part of Legacy Grazing’s GPS technology creates a virtual fence using neck collars to focus the efforts of the goats on areas of scrub or exclude grazing at certain times of the year to promote flowering opportunities in selected locations.

A herd of Cheviot goats was previously enlisted to help support Colchester Council’s restoration of a wildflower meadow at Farthing Bottom Field.

Cute - the goats are part of the ongoing Woodland and Biodiversity Project (Image: Shiela Winwright)

Martin Goss, portfolio holder for neighbourhood services and waste, said: “We are committed to preserving and enhancing biodiversity in Colchester and are extremely pleased to work with Legacy Grazing to welcome more goats to High Woods County Park over the summer.  

“The goats’ role is conservation-grazing of the dog rose, bramble and blackthorn that are currently dominating the site, and is vital in encouraging more wildflowers and diversity.

“This is just one small part of the wider work we are doing to safeguard and improve our environment in Colchester, from mowing less to planting trees and encouraging wildflowers.”  

Colchester Council has said the goats are familiarising themselves with the areas they are in after being moved onto the site.

Visitors to Highwoods Country Park are asked not to approach or feed the goats, to visit quietly and to not walk dogs through the field.