Tag: birds

Cemetery Wildlife April 2022

by Helen Bovillin Volunteers3 Comments on Cemetery Wildlife April 2022

CEMETERY WILDLIFE APRIL 2022

We have not had many of those famous April showers!  The total rainfall has been much lower than average for the month and the footpaths are therefore dry and easy to walk on.  There have been plenty of warm sunny days and the leaves on the trees have started to open.  That fresh, bright pale green so characteristic of Spring is everywhere now.

Trees and Plants

The English Oak trees planted by the volunteers last year are doing well, especially the larger of the two.

English Oak (2)

Alongside the green foliage of most of the trees is the copper colouring of the new leaves on the large Beech tree in the centre of the cemetery.  This tree is also known locally as the “Money Tree” and can be seen in my first photo.

Lower down, the Quince is flowering and nearby is some Yellow Archangel, which seems to do quite well in the shade.

Quince

Yellow Archangel

The Lesser Celandines growing on the grass verge have almost finished flowering but they are still going strong inside the cemetery.  The tiny blue flowers of the Forget-me-nots and Speedwell can now be seen if you look carefully amongst the other foliage.

Forget-me-not

Speedwell

Along the grass verge there is an abundance of Dandelions providing nectar for the Bees, Butterflies and other small insects.  The similar-looking Hawks-beard can also be seen.

Hawksbeard

I also found some Ribwort Plantain – the first time I’d noticed any along here.

Ribwort Plaintain

The Bluebells are now starting to flower but I will say more about them next month.  It was good to see plenty of Garlic Mustard in flower – another valuable food source for Butterflies, especially the Orange-tip.

Garlic mustard

Butterflies and insects

This month I saw quite a few Small and Large White butterflies, and also Comma and Brimstone.  I saw my first Orange-tips of the year this month.  I also caught a few brief glimpses of my first Green-veined White of the year.

Orange Tip

Male Orange Tip

The underside of the Orange-tip’s wings looks green but this is an optical illusion caused by the black and yellow patterning.

This month also saw the first Holly Blues and Speckled Woods of the year appearing in good numbers along the verge and also inside the cemetery.

Speckled Wood (2)

Holly Blues

Holly Blues usually rest with their wings not fully open.  These photos don’t really do them justice as they’re a much brighter blue than this but blink and you’ll miss them because they’re tiny and fast-flying.  Males and females have similar underwings.

Other insects in abundance were Bees, Ladybirds and various flies including the Bee-fly.

Bee-Fly

Birds

There are still some berries on the Ivy, providing food for Wood Pigeons, Blackcaps and Blackbirds.

Male Blackbird

The birds are still busy gathering nesting material.  I’ve seen quite a bit of activity around some of the bird boxes with Blue Tits in particular flying in and out of them. The larger birds will make nests of their own in the trees and bushes.

Female Blackbird

The Chiffchaffs have now arrived but are usually high up in the trees and not very easy to photograph.  Their call is loud and distinctive though!

Chiffchaff

Conclusion

April has been a month of abundance, with an explosion of colour and growth in most of the plants. The number and variety of Butterflies I’ve seen is very encouraging – I’ve seen a total of 10 different species so far this year.   Now is the perfect time for a stroll in the cemetery to enjoy the sights and sounds of the cemetery wildlife.  You might also enjoy the many monuments too – it seems like the wildlife does! Cemetery Wildlife March 2022

Stock Dove

 

 

Cemetery Wildlife March 2022

by Helen Bovillin General, Volunteers, Wildlife2 Comments on Cemetery Wildlife March 2022

Where do I begin? March has been a great month for the many and varied members of the cemetery wildlife family!

This first month of the new season started off with a few rainy days but then the sun came out.  Most of the days have been very sunny with the occasionally frosty start, but daytime temperatures have been higher than average for this time of year.

This warm sunshine is just what the hibernating cemetery wildlife needed and I saw the first butterfly of the year – the above Small Tortoiseshell – on 10 March.

Insects

It’s nice to be writing about insects again!  A week after I saw the Small Tortoiseshell, I saw Commas and Brimstones and I got a brief glimpse of a Peacock. These were on the grass verge alongside the cemetery, but I also saw some of them inside the main part of the cemetery.

These four species of butterfly spend Winter as adults and can sometimes have slightly damaged wings by the time they emerge. This isn’t surprising considering the number of storms they’ve had to survive this year.  But I did also see some very smart, new-looking individuals too.

Commas

I saw two Brimstones and both were males.  Their wings are bright yellow but they always rest with their wings closed so you only see that bright yellow in flight.  The females emerge slightly later than the males and are a pale green, almost white.

During the last weekend I saw my first white butterflies of the season.  I saw a very active Small White on the grass verge.  It only stopped very briefly and when I studied my photo, I found it was a male.

Small White

Then in the edible garden area behind Thoresby Primary School I saw a Large White.  I realise this isn’t a part of the cemetery but think for the purposes of this report it can be included.  After all, if your main entry into the cemetery takes you past this area then your cemetery wildlife experience begins here.

Both these species spend their winters as a pupa – a good indication that the weather is now warm enough for the butterflies to complete their final transition into full adults.

Large White

So that’s six different species of butterfly in just one month and in a relatively small area.  Quite impressive!

There have been plenty of Bees around.  The queens have emerged from their Winter hibernation and are starting to look for places to start a new colony.

These are the main species I’ve seen so far – Buff-tailed, White-tailed and Red-tailed Bumblebees, and Common Carder Bees.  I also saw a Tawny Mining Bee towards the end of the month.

Bees

I also saw some Bee-flies.  Their fluffy little bodies make them look remarkably like small bees.  If you’re lucky to see one of these flies resting on a flower or a leaf look at the wings, held open at right angles to the body.  Bees rest with their wings over their bodies.

Bee-Fly

Another insect I was delighted to see was this Hawthorn Shield Bug, on a Common Dog Violet leaf.

Hawthorn Shield Bug

There are lots of Ladybirds of various kinds around too.  Note the 7-Spot one on the right of the Commas photo for example.  This is one of the twelve species native to the UK, and there are also Harlequin Ladybirds around too.

Plants and Flowers

After a slow start the Lesser Celandines are now flowering in abundance and the grass verge at the side of the cemetery is looking beautiful.  They are also flowering inside the cemetery.  These small yellow flowers can have between 8 and 13 petals, and they feature on several of the photos in this report.  The other yellow flowers in the photos are Dandelions.

The Blackthorn trees around the cemetery are now in full flower and some of the leaf buds have started to open.  Fresh green shoots are starting to appear on some of the other trees as well.

But when you look at the ground the signs of Spring are all around in the smaller flowers now starting to open.  Red Dead-nettle and Wood Anemones are currently in flower on the grass verge.

Red Dead-nettle

Wood Anemone

Inside the cemetery small patches of Common Dog Violets can now be seen, and I even found a few Periwinkles in flower.

Common Dog-Violet

Periwinkle

Birds

The birds are in full song at the moment, with the Robins being one of the loudest.

Robin

The gathering of nest material has begun in earnest and I’ve seen several Blue Tits exploring the nest boxes.

Last year the volunteers sunk a shallow dish into the ground in the Quaker Burial Ground as there is no natural supply of water in the cemetery.  Other than the pools that form in wet weather of course!  The Blackbirds seem especially fond of it.  It’s topped up regularly in dry weather but is kept shallow for the safety of all visitors.

Blackbird bathing

As far as the larger birds are concerned, there are Magpies, Carrion Crows, Stock Doves and Wood Pigeons in the cemetery.  They can be seen foraging among the many ground covering plants including Wild Garlic, the leaves of which are shown here.

Wood Pigeon

Some of the volunteers had a close encounter with a Sparrowhawk, flying close over their heads and into the far corner of the cemetery.  It was too fast for a photo though! I also caught a brief glimpse of a female Blackcap earlier in the month.  There are also Goldfinches, Chaffinches, Great Tits, Coal Tits, Long-tailed Tits and Dunnocks around.

Conclusion

March has been a great month for the cemetery wildlife, with lots of sunshine and warmth.  But I couldn’t end this report without mentioning the Daffodils which are now open throughout the cemetery.  They are looking particularly spectacular along the grass verge, and should continue to look good well into April.

Cemetery Wildlife February 2022

Daffodils

 

 

 

Cemetery Wildlife February 2022

by Helen Bovillin General, Volunteers, Wildlife4 Comments on Cemetery Wildlife February 2022

Cemetery Wildlife February 2022

This is my 12th report for the newsletter.  My first one was in March 2021 and I have therefore spent this last 12-month period observing the flora and fauna of the cemetery in much greater detail than ever before.  The time has simply flown by!

February started with plenty of very cold but sunny days.  Then from mid-month onwards three named storms – Dudley, Eunice and Franklin – hit the UK.  Hull was not as severely affected as other parts of the country and the cemetery suffered no major damage.  A large branch came off a tree near the western boundary but no headstones were damaged.

Fallen branch

Unfortunately, the heavy rainfall has left some of the footpaths in a very muddy condition.  There was even a brief snowfall but it only gave a thin covering that soon melted away.  The rain, sleet and snow didn’t seem to adversely affect the cemetery wildlife though, and the birds were around as usual.

Chaffinch in snow

Birds

The birds have started to sing and were in fine voice all around the cemetery. The singing serves to mark out their territories and attract mates.  You can often hear them before you see them!  This Song Thrush was particularly loud and apart from its song, it can also be distinguished from the larger Mistle Thrush by the markings on its chest.  The Song Thrush has regular shaped markings akin to an arrowhead or a heart, whereas the markings on the Mistle Thrush are more irregular.

Song Thrush

Robins and Wrens also have fine singing voices and I saw and heard several of them in the cemetery this month.  The Dunnock also has a fine and melodious song.

Dunnock

The nesting process seems to have started already, as I saw a pair of Long-tailed Tits flying in and out of a dense patch of Brambles – and ideal nesting site for this species. I also observed this Great Tit gathering moss – an ideal nesting material which is in abundance throughout the cemetery.

Great Tit

Also seen this month – Coal Tits, Wood Pigeons, Stock Doves, Carrion Crows, Magpies, Blackbirds and Goldfinches.  And you can also hear, and then see, Greylag and Canada Geese flying overhead, most likely on their way to Pearson Park.

In October last year the volunteers carried out a check of the nest boxes and found an occupancy rate of 63.41%.  Since then, a few more have been located and checked.  Only one further box was found to have been used, giving an occupancy rate of 61.36%.  One box was found to be damaged and was replaced earlier this month.

Plants

The bulbs planted by the volunteers in the Quaker Burial Ground in Autumn have now started to flower, creating some nice splashes of colour in there.  The Crocus plants even attracted a visiting Hoverfly!

Crocus and hoverfly

The miniature Tete-a-Tete Daffodils are starting to create a nice border around the feature stones.

Daffodils

The main focus of my reports will always be the cemetery wildlife.  But I’ll also include the plants that the volunteers have set because these have such a beneficial effect on both residents and visitors alike.

It is now peak Snowdrop time and there are lots of them all over the cemetery – some single varieties, some double.  There are around 20 different species native to Europe and the Middle East, although they might not actually be native to the UK.  But they have been recorded as growing wild here since the late 18th century.

Snowdrops

Tiny green shoots are now visible on some of the trees and shrubs.  Flowers have just started to open on the Forsythia near the cemetery gates but I’ll talk about that next month. The Blackthorn is now in flower – the flowers appear on the plant before the leaves do.

Blackthorn

The Lesser Celandines I mentioned last month have not increased in significant numbers like I expected.  Looking back on this time last year the grass verge along Spring Bank West was covered in them.  There were even some Butterflies around during the last few days of that February.  The wet weather and lack of sunshine in the middle of the month has obviously affected their flowering.

Mushrooms

Even in the middle of Winter there are still some mushrooms to be found, including this Jelly Ear on a fallen branch.  I was lucky to find them when I did. A few days later they had started to shrivel and the plants around it had started to grow over what remained of them.

Jelly Ear

Conclusion

Weather-wise February has been a month of contrasts. Some of the plants are a little behind in their development compared to last year.  But the month ended with some fine sunny days.  I now have a whole year’s-worth of data, mainly in photographic form, for comparison.  It will be interesting to see how March this year compares to March last year. Wonderful Wildlife

 

Cemetery Wildlife January 2022

by Helen Bovillin Volunteers3 Comments on Cemetery Wildlife January 2022

Cemetery Wildlife January 2022 Cemetery Wildlife December

The year started with a very mild and sunny New Year’s Day – quite possibly the warmest on record for Hull.  There was only a small amount of rain and some fog at the start of the month.  It turned colder in the middle of the month and there was some frost, but it was generally very sunny and dry during the middle two weeks.  The month ended on a duller but still dry note, helping the footpaths to become easier to walk on.

I noticed how the sunlight was able to penetrate right into the heart of the cemetery.  It was actually getting more sunlight than the grass verge due to the position of the sun in the sky, having to rise above the tops of the houses on Spring Bank West.

Plants

I found a Lesser Celandine in flower on New Year’s Day, plus a few Brambles with flowers on them!  Later in the month a few more Lesser Celandines were in flower, and I also found a Dandelion and some Groundsel on the grass verge.

Lesser Celadine

There are lots of Snowdrops now starting to appear, helped no doubt by the fine sunshine, and they seem to be about a week earlier than last year.  Very tiny buds are starting to appear on some of the trees, and there are a few catkins on one of the Hazels.

Hazel Catkins

Insects

I noticed a few small insects in the air, and I also saw a Marmalade Hoverfly. Not surprisingly I didn’t see any butterflies, but I did see a report (from a reliable source) of a Small Tortoiseshell being seen in another part of Hull.

Dandelion with Marmalade Hoverfly  

Birds

It’s been a quiet month for bird sightings in that there have not been any unusual or rare visitors to report.  There are still plenty of the regular resident species around, such as Blue Tits, Great Tits and the much less abundant Coal Tit.

Coal Tit

I managed to catch a glimpse of a Treecreeper.  It started low down on the trunk of the tree and then quickly worked its way upwards, circling around the tree as it climbed.  They feed on insects found under the bark.

Tree Creeper

A walk through the cemetery wouldn’t be complete without seeing one of our most easily recognised birds, the Blackbird.  There are several of them around, raking through the leaves looking for food.  The females are dark brown with a darker bill.

Blackbird

Much of the cemetery wildlife can be seen on the ground, including Wood Pigeons. There are lots of them searching for food amongst the leaves and shrubs.  They can also be seen in the trees, eating Ivy berries.

The resident Robins are now in full song, marking out their territories and trying to attract a mate.  They’re very early risers, often starting to sing a couple of hours before sunrise.

Robin

Also seen this month – Chaffinches, Dunnocks, Stock Doves and Wrens.

Fungi

There are still fungi to be found in the Cemetery even in January.  The small and colourful Velvet Shank can even withstand freezing temperatures.

Velvet Shank

I also found some similar sized mushrooms growing on a fallen log and I believe these are known as Turkey Tail.  Mushrooms can often be quite difficult to identify as their appearance can vary enormously over their sometimes quite short life spans.

Turkey Tail fungus

When we look at mushrooms we only see the fruiting body of the organism.  The rest is hidden below the surface of whatever it’s growing on.  Some are so small it’s easy to miss them.  The Coral Spot is tiny but its bright colour makes it easy to see.

Coral Spot fungus

From the tiny to the large, I found a mushroom the size of the palm of my hand mid-January.  This is a type of Blewit.

Large Blewitt

I can’t say for definite if it was a Field Blewit or a Wood Blewit due to its poor condition but it was still a nice find.

Conclusion

January was a dry month with extremes of temperature ranging from extremely mild to the frosts you’d expect at this time of year.  There was plenty of cemetery wildlife around as usual of course.  But I couldn’t help but look back to this time last year though, when many of the volunteers and visitors to the cemetery enjoyed some excellent views of a Buzzard.  I wonder what our surprise wildlife of 2022 will be? Will it be a bird or an animal or even an insect? We have another 11 months to find out!

 

 

 

Cemetery Wildlife December

by Helen Bovillin General, Volunteers, Wildlife4 Comments on Cemetery Wildlife December

Cemetery Wildlife December

A few days after going to press last month, storm Arwen hit us.  I’m happy to report that none of the cemetery’s trees suffered any major damage during that storm.  A few branches broke loose but none of them were large enough to cause any damage.  But at the beginning of December storm Barra arrived and this caused some more significant damage to one of the trees near the main gates.  A large branch the size of a small tree broke off a Sycamore, blocking one of the footpaths.  Luckily it didn’t damage any of the headstones although it did fall quite close to them.  The volunteers quickly got it cleared it away.

December got off to a very cold, wet and windy start and there was even a slight dusting of snow in the first week.  It remained wet for most of the month and the footpaths are still very soft and muddy.  The fallen branches were put to good use by the volunteers, turning them into chippings which were used to repair the worst affected parts of the footpaths. Before the chippings were laid, some of the deepest mud was removed and put to one side, revealing many worms in the process.  The Robins were quick to notice this – it is always nice to see the cemetery wildlife benefiting from human activity!

Trees and Plants

Most of the trees are now bare, but a few pockets of leaves are still clinging on to some of them – for example, on this Norway Maple.

Norway Maple

I was surprised to see some flowers on one of the Pyracantha bushes growing along the grass verge on Spring Bank West, especially considering that it still had a few berries on it last month.  It is in a sunny location though.

Pyracantha in flower

There are still some berries on the Rowan – a good source of food for the birds.  Over the course of the next few years, it is hoped we can plant some new native trees and shrubs of the kind that have plenty of berries on them.  This will provide food for the current cemetery wildlife and hopefully attract new species, increasing the site’s biodiversity.

Rowan

Very few plants are in flower at the moment.  I noticed a Dandelion and some Smooth Sow-thistle along the grass verge, and also some Hogweed, although it was a much smaller plant than usual, being less than a foot tall.

Hogweed (2)

Birds

The highlight of this month was seeing three Bullfinches in a wild area towards the eastern side of the cemetery – please see lead photo at the start of this report.  This is the first time I’ve seen Bullfinches in the cemetery this year – they seem to be only occasional visitors at the moment.  But they do appear to like feeding on the seeds found in old Brambles and there are plenty of these in the cemetery.  Several areas, where there are no headstones, are deliberately left untouched for the benefit of the cemetery wildlife.

There are lots of Wood Pigeons around, and I’ve also seen a pair of Stock Doves in amongst them.  The Wood Pigeons are the larger of the two species.  I mentioned them in my first report back in March – these more detailed photos illustrate the different plumage and eye colours much better.

Wood Pigeon

The volunteers put up some more bird boxes a few weeks ago.  I noticed a Blue Tit checking one out only last week.  It seems quite early to be starting the nesting process, but it might just have been looking for somewhere to shelter from the cold.

Blue Tit (2)

Fungi

Last month I mentioned the intriguingly named King Alfred’s Cakes that one of the volunteers had found, and I managed to find quite a few of them too.  I wouldn’t normally do this, but I removed one from the tree and sliced through it to see what it looked like inside.  One of my reference books describes it as “Inedible. A folk remedy to relieve night cramp and it is called Cramp Balls for this reason”.

King Alred's Cakes

I also found a few very small mushrooms on the ground, some of which were growing out of the wood chippings laid earlier on in the year. Fallen branches can be good places for mushrooms to grow, and some of the larger branches have been deliberately left where they fell to encourage this.  Fungi, plus the tiny insects that can sometimes be seen on them, are another good food source for the cemetery wildlife.

Conclusion

It has been a very cold, wet and dull month but there is still plenty of wildlife around. As I write this it is nearly Christmas; by the time you read this Christmas will be over.  I hope yours was a happy Christmas and that the coming year will be a good one for you!

Robin fake snow

 

Cemetery Wildlife November

by Helen Bovillin General, Volunteers, Wildlife

Cemetery Wildlife November

November was a mild but damp month, and rather dull too with less sunshine than the previous month.  But when the sun came out it highlighted the stunning beauty of the Autumn colours in a way that took one’s breath away.  Many people I spoke to during my frequent walks around the cemetery also expressed their appreciation of this colourful sight.

Plants

This seems the ideal subject to talk about first, with the emphasis on trees as they are looking so good at the moment.

The main tree in the first photo is a Hornbeam – it is one of the species where the leaves turn yellow in Autumn.  It seems to be a good year for leaf colour because I don’t recall seeing this tree looking so vibrant last year.  This is located on the southern footpath not far from the main gates.

Hornbeam leaf

Another species where the leaves turn yellow in Autumn is the Norway Maple.  These trees are also looking very vibrant and colourful, providing a carpet of yellow and gold along the southern footpath.

The Southern Footpath

Norway Maple

There are a number of Turkey Oaks in the cemetery and their leaves have now turned brown and lie on the ground in abundance. Earlier in the year the volunteers planted two English Oak trees but these are only saplings with many years’ growth ahead of them.

English Oak

This shows the difference between the two species of Oak.  Please note the English Oak leaf is only smaller because it came from a much smaller tree.

The impressive Beech tree in the centre of the cemetery (also known as the “money tree”) has now dropped all its leaves, creating a carpet of copper around it. But many of the deciduous trees still have plenty of green leaves on them.

There are still plenty of berries on the Pyracantha and Berberis bushes.  I make no distinction between native and introduced species because to the cemetery wildlife they are simply just good sources of food.

Berberis

Mushrooms

From the largest structures in the cemetery, I now move on to some of the smallest. And if you spot them when they’ve only just started to grow, they really are small!  They can be particularly hard to find amongst all the fallen leaves which often tower above them.

Mushrooms and other Fungi are often difficult to identify because their appearances can change very quickly.

Velvet Shank

See what I mean?   They are another good food source for the cemetery wildlife hence the presence of what looks like bite marks on the second photo.  I have seen several other small mushrooms but I’ve been unable to identify them with any certainty.  But I can report that one of the volunteers found some Haresfoot Inkcaps recently, and also some King Alfred’s Cakes.  Yes, that really is the name of a fungus!

Another fungus that can be seen at the moment, usually on fallen trees and logs, is the Silverleaf Fungus. It starts off flat and then develops into rows of frills and other protuberances.

Silverleaf Fungus

Birds

There are no unusual visitors to report this month.  There are plenty of the usual resident species around such as Wood Pigeons, Robins, Wrens, Blackbirds, Chaffinches and Blue Tits. Stock Doves, Goldfinches, Coal Tits, Long-Tailed Tits and Dunnocks are also around.

There are also a number of Great Tits living in the cemetery.  These are bigger than Blue Tits and slightly bigger than Goldfinches.

Great Tit

Adult birds in full breeding plumage usually have chests that are a much brighter yellow than this one.  They can look stunning when the sun shines on them.

Insects

It seems strange not to be talking about butterflies but it is November after all.  However, one of the volunteers DID find a Small Tortoiseshell in her house a couple of weeks ago! But it was nowhere near the cemetery.

There are still lots of Ladybirds around and wasps and hoverflies too. There are also plenty of tiny insects around for the birds to find up high in the trees.

Conclusion

November has been a good month for the cemetery, with the trees being the real stars this time.  Birds are around in good numbers and it is always a delight to see new types of fungi. It’s the perfect time for a leisurely stroll to marvel at all the lovely cemetery wildlife! Cemetery Wildlife October

 

Ms Crackles

by Pete Lowdenin History, Volunteers, Wildlife

Ms Eva Crackles was born in Hull in 1918 and worked as a teacher for many years at Malet Lambert School. She received an honorary degree from the University of Hull in the 1990s. This was  followed swiftly by an MBE for recognition of her work in conservation. She died in 2007. Her works include ‘The Flowering Plants of Spurn’ and her major work, ‘Flora of the East Riding’.

This much can be gained by looking at her Wikipedia site.

However a little known piece of her work took place 45  years ago this month. She drafted a three page letter to the Leiusre Services Committee of Hull City council. In it she detailed her concerns for the ‘development of the Hull General Cemetery. She also gave a detailed analysis of the environment and ecology of the Cemetery at that time.

From a noted biologist this information should have been grasped thankfully by the Council. This report was perhaps something that they would and should have had to pay for. She gave them it as a gift.

Their reaction? Thanks but no thanks.

Here it is for your pleasure. I hope you enjoy it.

Forty five years later

Sadly, the biodiversity that Ms Crackles spoke of has decreased. Due almost entirely to the proliferation of the Sycamore, which is a poor tree with regard to habitat or food source for insects. Without the proliferation of aphids in summer it would be poor for birds too.

The Friends of Hull General Cemetery have raised this issue with the Council. The Council are in sympathy with the idea that many of the sycamores should be replaced with less invasive species such as Birch and Rowan but we were told that funding for such a scheme was problematic.

As such we just have to accept that what was once described by Ms Crackles as a ‘mixed deciduous woodland’ is, over time, becoming nothing more than a Sycamore plantation.

 

18 12 76 a

18 12 76 b

18 12 76 c

Cemetery Wildlife October

by Helen Bovillin General, Volunteers, Wildlife2 Comments on Cemetery Wildlife October

The “season of mists and mellow fruitfulness” is how John Keats described Autumn in his famous 1820 ode to this season.  The cemetery has not seen any mists this month but there has been the usual Autumnal mix of rain and cold days and sunshine and warm days.Cemetery Wildlife September

Plants

Many of the plants are now bearing that fruitfulness, including the Guelder Rose shown at the start of this report.  This is the season when it now becomes obvious why the Snowberry is so named, and its white berries are a good source of food for the cemetery wildlife.  Please note however that they are poisonous to humans!

Snowberry

The Pyracantha bushes are now full of their distinctive reddish-orange berries and they look particularly striking along the grass verge on Spring Bank West.  They are an excellent source of food for the many birds living in and around the cemetery.

Pyracantha

Last month seems to have been the best one for Elderberries and Brambles, with very few ripe fruits left on the bushes.  But there are still a few Brambles left, some of which are not quite ripe enough for the cemetery wildlife to eat.

Brambles

The Blackthorn bushes still have a few of their dark purple Sloe berries on them, although only in small numbers as you can see here.

Blackthorn

The Yew trees still have some of their small red berries on them.  The Berberis bushes growing in various places have started to show some nice autumn colour on their leaves.  They have small oval dark berries growing along the branches.

There are not many traditional-looking flowers to be seen this month other than a few Dandelions on the grass verge and small patch of Feverfew.

Feverfew

But the most abundant flowers to be seen this month are on the Ivy.  Initially the flower heads don’t look much like a traditional flower.  But when you look at them in closer detail you can see all the usual elements you’d expect to see in a flower, but just positioned differently.  If in the course of writing future editions of this column I have a “slow news month” then I may use that opportunity to talk about Ivy in greater detail.

Ivy

Butterflies and other insects

The only Butterflies I saw this month were a few Speckled Wood in the central grassy area of the cemetery during a warm spell earlier in the month.

Speckled Wood

There is an abundance of Ladybirds though – they can be seen just about everywhere.  Some are the native British ones and some, like the one on the Feverfew photo, are non-native Harlequins.

Birds

Nesting season is now over.  Some dry sunny days in the middle of October provided the ideal conditions for the volunteers to check the nest boxes to see which ones had been used.  This is the second year of doing this so it was interesting to compare this year’s findings with last year’s.

A total of 41 boxes were checked and 26 of them had been used, giving an occupancy rate of 63.41%.  (Last year a total of 40 boxes were checked and 24 had been used, giving an occupancy rate of 60%).

These figures suggest that this year was more successful than last year.  But three of the original boxes were either no longer present or were not located.  There are also 5 new boxes that were put in place too late to be included in last year’s check.

I could split the above figures according to nest box design and even down to the size of the hole in the front of the box.  This would generate more statistics, some of them quite impressive, but this is intended to be just a brief overview of the volunteers’ work relating to the cemetery wildlife.

Nest hygiene

For reasons of hygiene nest boxes are always cleaned out and left empty ready for the birds to start all over again in the Spring.  This is in accordance with guidelines from the relevant wildlife organisations.  The nests we found were like miniature works of art, carefully built from dried hogweed stems, twigs, feathers and leaves.  Most if not all of the nests contained moss which the birds can easily find on the trees and headstones.

Box 5 - 25 mm

Box 12 - 32 mm

I can’t say for definite who the occupants of the nests were but the first one was from a nest box with a 25mm hole.  This would suggest it had been occupied by either a Blue Tit or a Coal Tit.

Blue Tit

The second nest looks a lot cosier, doesn’t it?  The white material appears to be artificial filling of some kind and I think the small amounts of red material are wool are from the Poppies that are attached to the small wooden crosses dotted around the cemetery.  These are to commemorate the graves of soldiers from WWI and WWII.

I can’t say for definite which species of bird built this nest.  But it came from a box with a 32mm hole which would allow for a slightly larger bird such as a Great Tit or even a Nuthatch.  It was occupied last year too.

As mentioned earlier, the checking of the nests is not quite complete and needs a bit more work.  A few additions and clarifications to our existing data could make future checking easier and the results more meaningful.  Perhaps this time next year, after 3 years of checking the boxes, we will be able to publish a full report of our findings on the website.

Conclusion

October has been a quiet but colourful month for the cemetery wildlife, and the birds are becoming easier to see as the leaves start to fall.  The daylight hours may be less but there is still plenty of time for a leisurely stroll.  I’m sure you’ll manage to see at least one of these endearing little characters during your time here!

Robin

Grey Squirrel

 

 

Cemetery Wildlife September

by Helen Bovillin General, News, Volunteers, Wildlife2 Comments on Cemetery Wildlife September

As Summer Ends and Autumn begins we are now at that time of year when the days are roughly the same length as the nights. Cemetery Wildlife – August Well, for a couple of weeks anyway.  At the time of writing it looks like this September is set to be the warmest one on record.  For a few days we had temperatures in the mid to high 20s and it has been very dry with rain falling on only a couple of days.  This has created perfect conditions for a leisurely stroll to appreciate the cemetery wildlife.

Birds

Not much to report this month – the birds are still around but proving hard to capture on film.  The ones born this year are slowly starting to develop their adult plumage, such as this Chaffinch.

Juvenile Chaffinch (male)

You can see the steely blue crescent starting to appear around the head, indicating that this one is a male.

The volunteers sunk a shallow dish into the ground in the Quaker Burial Ground recently and the birds seem to appreciate this. No doubt other wildlife such as Squirrels and Foxes will appreciate it too.

Blackbirds

On a couple of days towards the end of the month I heard a Tawny Owl calling at sunset and this is very encouraging as the call seemed to be coming from the direction of the Owl boxes.

And finally, I was surprised to see a couple of Parakeets flying overhead while I was walking along Princes Avenue!  They were quite high up but from their call I could tell they were Ring-necked Parakeets.  It was disappointing to realise they were not headed for the Cemetery but probably for Pearson Park or East Park, where they have occasionally been sighted.

Butterflies and other insects

There are still some butterflies around including this Red Admiral on the grass verge along Spring Bank West.  It is a shame that it landed on a piece of litter but this butterfly looked too perfect not to take a quick photo!

Red Admiral

There were also some Small Whites along the verge, and a Holly Blue feeding on a Thistle.

Small White (male)

Holly Blue

But the butterfly most often seen inside the cemetery is the Speckled Wood.  They seem to be the easiest ones to photograph because they rest mainly on leaves and remain still long enough to get a good photo.

Speckled Wood

This was taken in the recently trimmed meadow area in the centre of the Cemetery.  The volunteers took care not to cut down the Teasel and as soon as the area around it was cleared the plant was buzzing with insects.

Teasel with Hoverflies

It is also that time of year when there are plenty of spiders around.  One of the most common ones is the Cross or Garden Spider.  It is a member of the Orb-weaving family and has a distinctive cross marking on its abdomen.  Many can be found in our gardens and parks as well as in the cemetery.  Look out for them and if you’re lucky you might get to see one creating its web.  It’s a fascinating process.

Spiders pair

This one has its prey neatly trussed up ready for consumption at a later date. The photo on the left shows a different spider of the same species, resting on our gardening equipment.

Also seen in the meadow area was this attractive White-lipped Snail.

White Lipped Snail

Plants

There are very few plants in flower at the moment.  A few Hogweed are still in flower, but most have now gone to seed – a good food source for the cemetery wildlife.

Hogweed

Other flowers seen this month are Feverfew, Thistle and Smooth Sow-thistle.  There is also some Cyclamen in flower near the Cholera Monument, although this is not a wild flower.

Smooth Sow Thistle

Cyclamen

Many of the plants have now started to produce berries and I hope to write in more detail about this next month.

Mushrooms

I have not found anything new this month, other than the usual very tiny Fairy Inkcaps growing in groups on the ground.

Conclusion

The cemetery is a great place to see and hear wildlife.  It is a great place to remember and appreciate the lives of the people who are buried here.  It is also a great place to appreciate the artistic beauty of the headstones and memorials.

Also it is a great place for photography.  As we head into Autumn the changing colours of the leaves and the increasing levels of light create the perfect setting for taking photos of the cemetery wildlife. Why not give it a go and share your photos on our very popular and vibrant Facebook page?

Cemetery Wildlife – August 2021

by Helen Bovillin General, News, Volunteers, Wildlife4 Comments on Cemetery Wildlife – August 2021

August was a quiet month, weather-wise, with no extremes of heat, cold or rain but with plenty of dull days.  Pretty much a typical summer month in these parts! Summer Wildlife

Birds

It seems to have been a good year for the cemetery’s birds, with plenty of young ones around.  All the cemetery’s Tit species have bred successfully – Long-tailed, Blue, Great and Coal (pictured above).  There are some young Blackbirds around, and I saw a young Song Thrush too – its tail feathers will appear later but it is still able to fly without them.

Juvenile Song Thrush

The best, albeit brief, sighting this month was a pair of Bullfinches but I didn’t manage to get a photograph of either of them.  The young Goldfinches of last month’s report are doing well and starting to feed independently.

There are plenty of Chaffinches around and these are easy to spot, especially the males with their pinkish-brown feathers.  The females are much duller shades of brown and can sometimes be mistaken for Sparrows.  But male and female Chaffinches have white feathers in their wings which make them easily identifiable in flight.

Male Chaffinch

Female Chaffinch

I find it fascinating that the males and females of some bird species have distinctly different plumage – for example, Chaffinches and Bullfinches.  This is known as sexual dimorphism. Their differences are quite obvious to see.  However, the differences between male and female Goldfinches are much more subtle to the point of them being almost identical.  I would not be able to say with confidence what sex the Goldfinches of last month’s report were!

Butterflies and other insects

It has been a very quiet month for butterflies.  One of my neighbours has a huge Buddleia in her garden which is normally teeming with butterflies in August.  I have only seen a couple on it so far and this lack of activity is reflected in the cemetery.  I caught brief glimpses of a few White butterflies (I was unable to tell which species) and I saw a Holly Blue flying high around some Ivy.

The most common butterfly species in the cemetery is the Speckled Wood and on sunny days there are usually a few around.  They flutter around each other in the air and then spend time basking in the sun.  This one was in the Quaker Burial Ground.

Speckled Wood

There are Ladybirds and Hoverflies around too but not in great numbers.

Marmalade Hoverfly on Wild Carrot

Flowers and other plants

The Cow Parsley and Wild Garlic has died back completely to the point where it’s hard to see where it once grew.  Any plants now in flower that look a bit like Cow Parsley will most likely either be Hogweed, which is quite a tall plant, or the lower-growing Wild Carrot.

I struggled to find anything in flower to show you this month.  The cemetery is still very green though!  I did manage to find a few Buttercups, Herb Robert, Nipplewort, Great Willowherb and Feverfew.  The berries are now starting to appear on the Snowberry bush but it is still in flower.

Nipplewort

 

Great Willowherb

 

Feverfew

 

Snowberry

My main aim is to write about the wild flowers and plants in the cemetery.  This section of the newsletter is called Cemetery Wildlife after all!  But many of the trees and shrubs growing in the cemetery are there because of what was planted in the past.  They have now become naturalised so I will not draw any distinctions between these and the wild flowers.  Regardless of whether or not they are native, they still have value to the cemetery wildlife.

The volunteers will only be planting native species in the cemetery, such as a recently planted English Oak.  Any wild flowers to be set will be native species that will blend in with their surroundings and complement what is already growing there.

The situation in the Quaker Burial Ground is slightly different because this area is owned by the Quakers under a long lease.  They have requested that the Friends of Hull General Cemetery manage this area on their behalf.  It is still in a conservation area where the same considerations apply with regard to the felling of trees and so on.  But we have been able to set some new shrubs and plants that are not necessarily native species.  However, we will also be planting some native species whenever we can.

Mushrooms

I have not seen any fresh large specimens this month, but there are still plenty of tiny mushrooms to be seen growing on the ground.  Given that the footpaths are covered in wood chippings this is not unexpected!

Mammals

I have no new Fox or Hedgehog sightings to report, but there are always some Grey Squirrels around and these can be seen almost every day.  There will always be someone who doesn’t like them of course.  But I never tire of watching them chasing each other up and around the trees, or simply posing on the ground.  And what child doesn’t love seeing them during family walks through our favourite cemetery?

The Grey Squirrel can vary in colour quite a lot – this one has a brilliant white chest and mainly grey/brown colouring.  But some Squirrels can have more gingery hairs and very pale ginger chests.

Eastern Grey squirrel

Conclusion

A rather uneventful month for the cemetery wildlife, with the dull and cooler days perhaps accounting for the low numbers of butterflies on the wing.  The grass verge on Spring Bank West still doesn’t contain many flowers and this will have affected butterfly numbers too.  But the birds are around in good numbers.  Berries are now starting to appear on the bushes so they will have plenty of food to keep them going as we head into September. Dare I say that it is starting to feel slightly Autumnal already?