Even if animals don’t speak in words and languages, they have their own ways of communicating with us and each other. Some cats meow at their parents like they’re having a conversation, and some dogs learn to use ‘talking’ buttons, but the swans at The Bishop’s Palace in Somerset, UK, follow a centuries-old tradition to ask their caretakers for food every day.
UK resident Olive witnessed an adorable moment at The Bishop’s Palace on June 6, as one of the bird caretakers taught baby swans to ring a bell in exchange for a snack. It couldn’t be any cuter!
@oliveforestt Summertime Palace training the babies to ring for food ✨️ #bishopspalacewells #rurallifestyle #castlecore #nationaltrust
I could watch these fluffy baby birds all day long! They know exactly what to do when the bell is lowered down toward the moat, and they’d probably ring it endlessly if the man who fed them didn’t reel it back up.
Related: Tradition of Swans Ringing Bells to Be Fed Has Everyone Enchanted
Commenters couldn’t help but notice him “Taking the string away so they don’t milk it,” but they also noticed just how proud the mama swan looked as she watched her little ones take over a family tradition.
Grace is the resident swan at The Bishop’s Palace, and she welcomed her newest baby swans, called cygnets, in April.
How cute! These baby birds are one of the most famous (and adorable) additions to this historic landmark, and they continue to thrive thanks to sweet traditions like this.
The Bishop Palace Swans
Anyone can learn to train a dog, cat, or other pet, but it takes a special person to train a wild animal. However, many people have the patience, knowledge, commitment, and luck to build a critter’s trust, just like a bishop’s daughter who lived at The Bishop’s Palace in the 19th century.
Tradition has it that the bishop’s daughter taught swans on the moat to ring a bell in exchange for food. Almost 200 years later, a special caretaker named ‘The Swan Whisperer’ gets to continue this beloved routine.
And lucky visitors like Olive get to witness it! Even though a new flock of cygnets has to learn to ring the bell each year, it truly never gets old.
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