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Cemetery Wildlife – July 2023

July 30, 2023 by Helen Bovillin Wildlife

While parts of mainland Europe sweltered under record breaking heat, it has been a rather cool month here, with a higher than usual rainfall too. This caused some of the footpaths to become muddy again. There have been some warm sunny days though, and the cemetery wildlife is still thriving. This is particularly noticeable with the birds, as I’ve seen lots of fledglings around.

Birds

I started this report with a young Robin. It is probably less than a month old as it was flying, but doesn’t yet have its red breast. This will develop in late summer when the bird is between two and three months old. Once the young bird has its red breast it will be chased out of the area by the very territorial males. The initial lack of a red breast prevents this from happening and gives it time to learn to fly and feed itself.

I’ve seen lots of young Great and Blue Tits around the cemetery too.

Two photos showing an adult Blue Tit and a juvenile Blue Tit — **Blue Tits – adult (left); juvenile (right)**

I was delighted to see a Coal Tit this month. It was high up in a tree so I couldn’t get a particularly good photo of it, but I could clearly see the distinctive white patch towards the back of its head. That and the beige coloured chest meant it couldn’t be any other bird.

A Coal Tit high up in a tree in the cemetery — **Coal Tit**

I regularly heard and saw Goldfinches this month. There were lots of Chaffinches around, including young ones, and I still got occasional glimpses of the two Bullfinches I mentioned last month. I’m sure it’s the same pair as they’re not a common or numerous species here.

Two photos - one showing a male Chaffinch and the other showing a male Bullfinch — **Chaffinch (left) and Bullfinch (right) illustrating their different colouring and beak size. Both are male.**

I also saw young Blackbirds foraging on the ground, but begging for food whenever a parent was nearby. I also saw several Carrion Crows, Magpies, Wood Pigeons, Wrens and this Song Thrush.

A Song Thrush foraging on the ground — **Song Thrush**

Insects

There were lots of Ladybirds around this month, and lots of Hoverflies too. When I use my phone to take close-up photos of flowers with Hoverflies on them, it’s always amusing to see another one trying to land on the flower on my phone screen!

A Marmalade Hoverfly on a yellow flower — **Marmalade Hoverfly**

I kept seeing Thick-legged Flower Beetles too, a species I hadn’t seen in previous years in the cemetery.

The yellow flower of the Tansy plant, with a Thick-legged Flower Beetle resting on it — **Thick-legged Flower Beetle on Tansy. It lacks the thick thighs, meaning this one is a female.**

I see lots of flies too, but tend not to mention them as they’re so commonplace and often quite small and difficult to photograph. But this Flesh Fly stood out, being larger than most.

A Flesh Fly resting on a leaf. — **Flesh Fly**

Butterflies

Last month I told you the story of a Large White Butterfly from egg to larva/caterpillar. But I also noticed something unusual about a week after I saw the caterpillar on the plant stem. I saw another Large White caterpillar in that same area (or maybe it was the same one?) on a cluster of what looked like oval shaped eggs. I knew these weren’t the butterfly’s eggs, so I did a bit of research and discovered a rather gruesome story.

It seems the “eggs” you can see in the photos below are actually the pupae of a Braconid, a type of tiny parasitic wasp. It lays its eggs inside other insects, including caterpillars. The eggs hatch and the larvae eat the host insect without its knowledge, whilst leaving the vital organs intact so the host doesn’t die. They then hatch out through a hole in the skin of the still-living caterpillar, and pupate near to it.

The caterpillar is then somehow persuaded to spin a web of silk around all the Braconid pupae to protect them. (This is the material it would normally use to make a cocoon inside which it would turn into a butterfly). And still, barely alive, the caterpillar keeps watch over them. I assume this is what we can see in the photo on the left, although the caterpillar still looks quite rounded rather than an eaten-out husk. A week later there was no caterpillar but the web with the pupae in them was still there.

I wasn’t able to observe what happened next due to the rather heavy rain from the middle to the end of the month and I lost track of the plant in the photos. Of course, these photos might not illustrate any or even part of the process I’ve described, but it did seem to make sense.

I didn’t see any more caterpillars, nor did I see a lot of butterflies until towards the end of the month, when there were a number of white ones around – Small White, Large White and Green-Veined White.

A Green-veined White Butterfly on a Wild Carrot flowerhead — **Green-veined White Butterfly on Wild Carrot. Note the tiny beetles on the left, possibly a type of Jewel Beetle.**

I also saw a few Holly Blues, several Speckled Wood, a Comma and a Red Admiral.

A Red Admiral Butterfly high up on some white Bramble flowers. Brambles are great food for the cemetery wildlife. — **Red Admiral on Bramble flowers**

Plants and Flowers

The Brambles in the cemetery and along the grass verge are currently at all stages of development. Some have buds on them, some are in flower, as seen in the photo above, and some have fully ripe fruits on them. All good news for the cemetery wildlife!

Some more of the wildflower plants set by the volunteers last year are now flowering. This includes the Tansy on a previous photo, and the yellow flower the Hoverfly is resting on. These yellow flowers that look similar to Dandelions can be quite difficult to identify and they include Hawkbit, Hawk’s-Beard, Goatsbeard and Cat’s Ear.

Mallow is still in flower along the grass verge – Common and Musk.

Common Mallow growing in the cemetery — **Common Mallow (above)**

The pink flowers of the Musk mallow, with two Marmalade Hoverflies — **Musk Mallow with visiting Marmalade Hoverflies**

The Wild Basil is also starting to flower.

The pink flowers of the Wild Basil — **Wild Basil**

There are Privet bushes in various places in the cemetery, and these were in flower in July. The white flowers are rather small, but they do have a very nice fragrance.

The white flowers of the Privet growing in the cemetery — **Privet**

There is also some Hedge Woundwort growing in the cemetery. It appears in the same place each year but doesn’t seem to have spread anywhere else.

The tall pink flower stems of Hedge Woundwort — **Hedge Woundwort**

I also found some Wall Lettuce – it seems to tolerate shade and adds a bit of colour to a dark area.

The small yellow flowers of the Wall Lettuce, growing near a headstone in the cemetery — **Wall Lettuce**

Fungi

Not much to report, except for this small cluster of Fairy Inkcaps underneath an old bracket fungus. There are a few tough old bracket fungi still around, but I haven’t seen any other new mushrooms.

A large bracket fungus attached to a tree, with some smaller Fairy Inkcap mushrooms growing underneath it - food for the cemetery wildlife — **Bracket Fungus and Fairy Inkcaps**

Conclusion

A cooler and wetter month than June. The vast majority of the Hogweed and Cow Parlsey has finished for the season, so anything you see from now on that looks similar is probably Wild Carrot. The die-back has left the cemetery looking a little battered, and the heavy showers have caused the taller plants such as the Thistles to bend over. But fresh plants are starting to grow and flower, and there is abundant cemetery wildlife wherever you look.

A squirrel in a tree looking direct to the camera — **See you next month!**

Helen Bovill

Helen is a keen photographer and nature lover. She spent a large part of her working life at the Land Registry. She is a member of the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust and various other similar organisations. Living close to the Cemetery for over 30 years she has seen the fortunes of the site fluctuate and has joined the FOHGC to make a positive difference.

Cemetery Wildlife – June 2023

June 30, 2023July 30, 2023 by Helen Bovillin Wildlife4 Comments

June started off dry and warm, with some very hot spells of over 25 C on several days. There was some rain towards the end of the month, a few of the showers being quite heavy. This provided the plants with enough water to keep them alive and avoid them shrivelling and dying in the heat. This June has been one of the hottest on record according to the weather reports in the media. The dry, shaded pathways in the cemetery provided some cooler and welcome relief from the heat of Spring Bank West for the human visitors, and the cemetery wildlife seemed to be carrying on as normal.

Birds

A male Bullfinch sitting on a branch in the cemetery — **Bullfinch (male)**

I mentioned seeing Bullfinches in my report last month. I’m delighted to say that I saw both the male and female on several occasions throughout the month, sometimes together and sometimes separate. I saw the male more often than the female, suggesting she might have been sitting on some eggs, or brooding some chicks. When she’s doing this, the male gathers seeds in a pouch in the bottom of his mouth and carries them back to the nest to feed her. The photo at the top of the report is the female – her subdued colours help to camouflage her when she’s on the nest. It turned out that I was right about them being a breeding pair because I did catch a brief glimpse of a young fledgling, possibly two. They lack any of the parent’s colours, being mainly brown.

There are other fledglings around too, including Blackbirds, Chaffinches and Great Tits.

A fledgling Great Tit on a branch in the cemetery — **Great Tit**

You can tell this is a young bird because the yellow gape at the side of the beak is still visible. Also the feathers are a very pale lemon yellow, and its legs are pale blue. The adult bird’s legs tend to be a darker grey colour.

I caught a brief glimpse of a Sparrowhawk chasing a Wood Pigeon and another brief glimpse of a male Blackcap. However, I didn’t see any other unusual or rarer birds than the species I usually see in the cemetery. I still heard the occasional Chiffchaff calling, and other birds were calling and singing too, but nowhere near as loud and as frequent as last month. The nesting season is well underway, making the need to sing to attract a mate and mark out territory less important.

Insects

Butterflies

It’s been a very quiet month for butterflies, and the only species I saw were Holly Blue, Large White, Small White and Speckled Wood. I also caught a brief glimpse of a bright orange one but it was a fast flier that didn’t land so I couldn’t confirm its identity although it was most probably a Comma.

Speckled Wood butterfly on a teasel — **Speckled Wood resting on a Teasel – at one point I saw 6 of them circling high up in the trees**

This lack of butterflies is known as the “June gap” because the ones that emerged earlier in the year will have mated, laid their eggs and then died. There is then a period between that and the emergence of the next generation from July onwards. And here is a perfect example of that principle – I found this Large White caterpillar in the same area (possibly even on the same plant) where I saw eggs being laid last month. Here’s my photo from last month’s report –

A Large White butterfly laying eggs on Hedge Mustard — **Large White laying eggs on Hedge Mustard – taken 25 May**

And here’s a caterpillar I found this month –

A Large White caterpillar on a well-eaten hedge mustard plant — **Large White Caterpillar – taken 25 June**

I very rarely notice caterpillars as they are so well camouflaged. This is the final stage or instar of its life as a caterpillar. It seems to have eaten most of the Hedge Mustard plant it’s on and is now making its way down the stem to find a place to pupate. It will emerge as an adult butterfly sometime in July.

Other Insects

However, there were still plenty of other insects around. The best find for me was this – a Thick-Legged Flower Beetle. I’ve seen these before in other locations but never here. This was on the grass verge alongside the cemetery and it’s on an Oxeye Daisy. However, the flower has been nibbled quite extensively by the cemetery wildlife. I saw a few of these beetles throughout the month – this one’s a male. The female is slightly smaller and lacks those thick thighs.

A thick-legged flower beetle on a well eaten oxeye daisy — **Thick-Legged Flower Beetle (male) on Oxeye Daisy**

There were lots of Ladybirds at all stages of their life cycle just about everywhere I looked this month. This is a very freshly emerged one with its spots barely visible – they’ll develop over a period of a few hours or so.

A newly emerged Ladybird on a thistle leaf — **Newly emerged Ladybird**

There were plenty of Bees of various kinds buzzing around the flowers, and Hoverflies too.

Fox-and-cubs plant with a Marmalade hoverfly approaching it — **Marmalade Hoverfly approaching Fox-and-Cubs**

Plants

Native Wildflowers Planted by the Volunteers

The “no mow” grass verge on Spring Bank West on the southern boundary of the cemetery had become rather choked with Cow Parsley and Thistles recently. However, these have now started to die back, allowing some more of the plants set by the volunteers last year to come through and flower. These include some Fox-and-Cubs as shown on the previous photo. They get their name from the flowers being the same colour as a fox, with the dark buds representing the cubs. An alternative name for this plant is Orange Hawkbit.

These wildflower plants, all in keeping with the nature of the site, were provided by Hull City Council and comprised several different types including the Oxeye Daisies already mentioned, Red Campion, Clustered Bellflower, Common Knapweed, White Campion and Musk Mallow. As I’m familiar with the plants that flower along here, it’s easy to spot the new ones that pop up for the first time.

I’m also assuming that another one of the plants we set was this – a Wild Carrot – as I haven’t noticed any here previously. It’s easy to distinguish from Cow Parsley because it has very thin, feathery leaves directly underneath the flower heads. In addition, there is a tiny dark brownish-purple flower right in the middle of the flowerhead, as shown in the close-up.

Wild Carrot - side and top views — **Wild Carrot – side view and close-up**

We’ve also planted some Teasels in a couple of locations inside the cemetery. Again, it’s an approved wildflower that’s in keeping with the nature of the site. It’s semi-carnivorous because rainwater is collected at the base of the leaves, trapping and drowning flies and other small insects. The plant thus gets a supply of rainwater, and nutrients from the bodies of the insects. It looks like a Hoverfly of some sort will be providing the nutrients here.

Teasel with a pool of water containing a dead insect — **Teasel and drowned insect**

Other Plants

The Meadow Cranesbill growing in the Quaker Burial Ground always looks colourful at this time of the year.

The Astilbe growing inside the Quaker Burial Ground came into flower earlier in June. Whilst not a wild plant, it’s been growing here for many years and deserves a mention because its delicate flowery fronds provide a good source of nectar for the tiny branch of the cemetery wildlife.

Astilbe

Elsewhere in the cemetery I found this Red Valerian. Some areas inside the cemetery are looking a bit tired as the spring plants start to wilt and die, so this added some welcome colour.

Valerian growing wild in the cemetery — **Red Valerian**

The leaves on all the trees are now fully open and most of them have finished flowering. However, one of the last trees to flower is the Common Lime.

The flowers of the Common Lime Tree — **Common Lime**

Conclusion

June has been a good month in the cemetery for both wildlife and humans alike. There generally aren’t enough mammals in either numbers or variety of species to warrant a heading of their own, but as I always see at least one or two Squirrels whenever I visit the cemetery I shall end this report, and possibly all future reports, with a “Squirrel of the month”. This time it takes the form of an engraving on the Blundell monument, recently restored by the volunteers and looking rather elegant in the morning sunshine!

Helen Bovill

Cemetery Wildlife – May 2023

May 31, 2023May 31, 2023 by Helen Bovillin Wildlife1 Comment

May got off to a wet start, but there was plenty of warm sunshine throughout the month. I was away on holiday for 11 days in the middle of the month and when I got back home, I couldn’t believe the amount of growth there had been while I was away! The leaves on the trees are almost fully open, flowers are blooming everywhere and the cemetery wildlife is making the most of this late Spring abundance. The month ended on a cool but dry note.

Plants and flowers

The Bluebells were nearly at their peak when the above photo was taken. The vast majority of them are not the native British Bluebells but a Spanish variety. Most are blue of course, but I did see a few pink ones and quite a few white ones too. The stems have a more upright appearance whereas the native British ones have a more downward curving stem. Their flowering reached its peak in the middle of the month.

White Bluebells, sometimes known as Snowbells — **Bluebells**

Another seasonally abundant plant in the cemetery is the Wild Garlic which is also known as Ramsons. It started to flower a bit later than usual but by the end of the month it had reached its peak.

Some more of the wildflower plants the volunteers set along the Spring Bank West verge last Autumn are now in flower, including Oxeye Daisies, Red Campion and Ribwort Plantain.

There is a lot of Cow Parsley growing along the verge. I also saw some more yellow flowers in the same family as Dandelions including Smooth Sow Thistle. There are many similar-looking yellow flowers growing in and around the cemetery, so it isn’t always easy to say what some of them are. But I think one of the plants is Hawk’s-beard.

The yellow flowers of Smooth Sow-thistle on the grass verge alongside the cemetery — **Smooth Sow Thistle (above)**

White and yellow flowers — **Hawk’s-beard**

I found another yellow flower in the cemetery – this Greater Celandine. It’s much taller than the Lesser Celandine, of which there are still a few to be seen in the cemetery.

Greater Celandine growing in the cemetery — **Greater Celandine**

The Hedge Mustard is now flowering. This plant has a tiny yellow flower and is easy to miss, but the cemetery wildlife seems to like it as I often found butterflies on it.

The tiny yellow flowers of the Hedge Mustard plant which are great for the cemetery wildlife — **Hedge Mustard**

It’s nice to see other colours appearing in amongst all the white and yellow such as the Periwinkle, and a few of the plants are still in flower. There are a lot more Germander Speedwell growing in the cemetery this year and their vivid little blue flowers are easy to spot among the greenery. But the plant with the tiniest flowers must surely be the Ivy-leaved Speedwell. There is a lot of it growing in various places but you might not have noticed the flowers because they’re such a pale colour and they’re only about 4 mm wide.

A blue Periwinkle flower and green foliage — **Periwinkle (above)**

The mall blue flowers of Germander Speedwell — **Germander Speedwell (above)**

The tiny blue flowers of the Ivy-leaved Speedwell — **Ivy-leaved Speedwell**

I also found some Rock Crane’s-bill growing in the Cemetery, and some Herb Robert. These splashes of pink contrast nicely with the greenery.

Rock Crane's-bill in the cemetery — **Rock Crane’s-bill (above)**

Herb Robert

Insects

I haven’t seen any new species of butterfly this month. Those that I did see on several occasions were the Orange-tip, Green-veined White, Small White, Large White and Holly Blue on the grass verge. And I could almost guarantee seeing a Speckled Wood in the Quaker Burial Ground every sunny day this month!

A male Large White butterfly on a Dandelion — **Large White (male) (above)**

Holly Blue butterfly (female) on a leaf — **Holly Blue (female)**

I was very pleased to see this – a Common Green Shield Bug – early in the month. There are several species of Shield Bug native to the UK and they get their name from a shield-shaped mark on their backs, although it’s not particularly visible in this photo.

A Common Green Shield Bug on a Dandelion — **Common Green Shield Bug**

The grass verge was buzzing with hoverflies and several species of bee this month, including this Red Mason Bee.

A Red Mason Bee on a Dandelion — **Red Mason Bee (with Ant)**

Birds

I saw the usual species I’d expect to see throughout the month, such as Magpies, Carrion Crows, Wood Pigeons, Blue Tits, Great Tits, Chaffinches, Wrens, Blackbirds and Robins. I occasionally saw Dunnocks, Long-tailed Tits and Stock Doves but I didn’t see any Coal Tits this month. In fact it’s been a while since I last saw one.

A singing Robin perched on top of a noticeboard in the cemetery — **Robin**

I also heard Chiffchaffs calling from high up in the trees, hidden by the leaves. I also saw what I think was a Sparrowhawk perched atop the tower of Thoresby Street school but this was just as the sun was setting and it was mostly in silhouette. Later in the month I got a brief glimpse of a male Blackcap but my most thrilling sighting was of a male Bullfinch one day, and then a couple of days later I saw a male and a female together. Unfortunately, I didn’t manage to get any photos.

Conclusion

I’ve concentrated on the flowers and insects this month because there was so much variety to be seen. I also took part in the iNaturalist City Nature Challenge for Hull at the start of the month. Some of the photos I took for that project are included here. Each submission to the website/app is called an observation, and I made most of these observations in the Cemetery or on the grass verge. Here’s a link to the results for Hull:

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?place_id=any&project_id=152160&subview=table&view=observers

The back of a Squirrel in the cemetery — **“I’m behind you” – a Squirrel to end the report!**

Helen Bovill

Cemetery Wildlife – April 2023

April 30, 2023April 30, 2023 by Helen Bovillin Wildlife5 Comments

April was generally another cool and wet month, with a higher than average total rainfall meaning the footpaths in the cemetery are still a bit softer than usual. I noticed a huge amount of growth in and around the cemetery, with flowers blooming everywhere. However, there were plenty of warmer, sunny days too, and that was how the month ended. The cemetery wildlife is thriving, and many people have told me and the other volunteers how good everything looks.

Insects

Butterflies

I was delighted to see my first Peacock of the year this month (above). I kept seeing at least one on several of those sunny days. April also saw my first yearly sightings of Speckled Wood, Small White, Large White, Orange-tip, Holly Blue and Green-veined White. This makes a total of 11 different species this year, 10 seen on the grass verge alongside the cemetery, one seen inside the cemetery and some seen in both locations. From my own observations over the past three years these are all the species one can expect to see in the cemetery every year. However I have occasionally seen other species, so I’ll keep looking out for them.

A Speckled Wood butterfly on a branch with green leaves on it — **Speckled Wood in the Quaker Burial Ground**

The differences between Small and Large Whites can sometimes be hard to see at this time of year because the markings on the Spring brood can be quite faint. The male Small White has one black spot on each upper wing and the female has two. I’ve noticed that the innermost of those two spots can look like it’s divided into two, but all the reference material I’ve seen regards it as just one spot.

The male Large White has no spots and again the female has two. Whilst it’s therefore easy to tell male Small and Large Whites apart, it’s harder in the females because both have two spots. The dark band on the edge of the wings is a good indicator of which species you’re looking at. It doesn’t extend as far along the edge of the Small White’s outer wing as on the Large White, where the band extends further around and is shaped rather like a boomerang.

Another butterfly where the males and females are different (known as sexual dimorphism) is the Orange-tip. This is a male – the females lack the orange tips. And when I checked the photo, I saw the tops of his legs are covered in fine hairs, something I hadn’t noticed before.

Orange-tip butterfly (male) on a green leaf — **Orange-tip (male)**

Sexual dimorphism also occurs in the beautiful little Holly Blue.

It also occurs in the Brimstone. Those differences are most noticeable when the butterfly is flying, because the males look bright yellow whereas the females are almost white. At rest, and especially in bright sunshine, it can be hard to tell them apart because both have quite colourful underwings. But generally the female is a pale shade of green and the male is a slightly darker, yellower shade of green.

The last species of Butterfly I saw for the first time this year was a Green-veined White. It was in the central part of the cemetery near the new Larkin commemorative bench. This is another species that shows sexual dimorphism – the males have either one spot or none.

A female Green-veined White butterfly on a leaf in the cemetery. — **Green-veined White (female) showing two black spots on each upper wing**

I’ve made several wildlife posts on our Facebook page recently and it might therefore seem that the cemetery is teeming with butterflies! I do usually see at least three different species on each sunny day but usually only in ones and twos. Nevertheless, it is still a real joy to see them, feeding on all the flowers. Interestingly I looked back on my report for April last year, and although it had been a much drier month, I’d still managed to see 10 different species of butterfly by then.

Bees and other insects

I’ve seen plenty of Bees of various kinds this month including Red, White and Buff-tailed Bumblebees, Honeybees, Hairy-footed Flower Bees and lots of Tawny Mining Bees. The first photo shows one that’s emerged from its burrow. The next photos show one making a burrow underground in which to lay its eggs. This is one of our native species of solitary Bee.

I’ve seen plenty of Bee-flies this month. Interestingly they’re a parasite of Tawny Mining Bees, laying their eggs in the Bee’s open burrow so that when they hatch the larvae can feed on the bee’s food and offspring.

I’ve also seen Wasps, Hoverflies, flies and lots of other very small insects. I also caught a brief glimpse of a Hummingbird Hawk-moth on two occasions this month, the first one I’ve ever seen in the Cemetery! It’s a day-flying month and although this is a migrant species, we also have several native species of day-flying moths. It’s a fact that in the UK there are more species of day-flying moths than there are species of butterfly!

I also saw lots of Ladybirds this month. Most of them were our native Seven-spot ones but I also saw some non-native Harlequins.

Plants and Flowers

Smaller ones

March has been an excellent month for wildflowers. The ones planted by the volunteers on the grass verge last year are now starting to flower, such as this Cowslip.

Cowslips growing in the grass verge alongside the cemetery — **Cowslip**

Inside the cemetery, especially in the darker shaded areas, Hogweed is now starting to flower. Note how the buds are a dark pink colour before opening up to reveal their characteristic white flowers.

Two photos showing Hogweed Buds and in full flower in the cemetery — **Hogweed**

Yellow is still the dominant flower colour in the cemetery. There are still some Celandines to be seen, especially in the cemetery, but the Dandelions are in full bloom now as you can see from some of the above photos. I also found this unusual double Dandelion.

A double Dandelion surrounded by Celandines — **Dandelion and Celandines**

These are all an excellent source of food for the insect branch of the cemetery wildlife. I also found a small patch of Yellow Archangel, and plenty of Wood Avens and Common Chickweed.

Yellow Archangel growing in the cemetery — **Yellow Archangel (above)**

The tiny flower of the Wood Avens — **Wood Avens (above)**

The tiny white flower of the Common Chickweed — **Common Chickweed**

The Bluebells have now started to flower but their peak time is in May so I’ll talk about them a bit more next month.

Trees

When we think of flowers, we usually think of the ones that look like those in my previous photos. But trees also have flowers although they look quite different in appearance and colour. During the recent windy weather a lot of the tree flowers had fallen onto the ground, including several clusters of flowers from a Norway Maple.

Fallen Norway Maple flowers resting on top of a headstone in the cemetery — **Norway Maple**

The flowers of some trees are known as catkins. The Hornbeam is monoecious, meaning it has male and female catkins on the same tree. The male catkins are the largest – I’ve marked one of the smaller female ones with an arrow.

The male and female catkins of the Hornbeam tree — **Hornbeam**

You can also see the flowers of the Spotted Laurel on the white butterfly photo – bottom left.

Birds

I haven’t seen anything unusual this month. The regular species are busy gathering nest material and marking out their territories – the Great Tits are particularly loud at the moment.

Another bird with a very distinctive call is the Chiffchaff, which I always hear before I see it, singing from very high up in the trees and from quite early in the morning too.

A Chiffchaff on a branch — **Chiffchaff**

Other small birds around in good numbers are Blue Tits, Chaffinches, Robins, Blackbirds and Long-tailed Tits. I’ve also seen Wrens, Goldfinches, Dunnocks and I also caught a quick glimpse of two Treecreepers. I haven’t seen any Coal Tits this month though.

Of the larger birds, I’ve seen Wood Pigeons, Stock Doves, Carrion Crows and Magpies.

Cemetery wildlife - a Magpie on the grassy area in the middle of the cemetery — **Magpie**

Fungi

Not much to report this month, apart from some Jelly Ear growing on an old fallen branch and a bracket of some type growing high up in a tree. The Velvet Shank that I used to see every day has all but disappeared, probably eaten by the cemetery wildlife!

A Jelly fungus growing on a fallen branch - food for the cemetery wildlife — **Jelly Ear (above)**

A bracket fungus growing on a tree trunk — **Bracket fungus**

Conclusion

April has been a great month for the cemetery wildlife, with lots of colour and activity to be seen. I managed to spend plenty of time walking in the cemetery and along the grass verge, especially on sunny days – here’s a collection of some of the photos I took on just one of those morning walks.

And finally, there’s still time to take part in the City Nature Challenge 2023 – details below – for you to record not just the cemetery wildlife but any you see in your gardens in Hull!

https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2023-hull

Helen Bovill

Cemetery Wildlife – March 2023

March 30, 2023April 30, 2023 by Helen Bovillin Wildlife1 Comment

March got off to a very cold and wet start, with several days of sub-zero temperatures and some sleet and snow showers. The snow didn’t settle though, and was gone within a few hours of it originally falling. It didn’t seem to have any adverse effects on the cemetery wildlife though, which was as active as ever. The birds, including the male Chaffinch pictured above, just seemed to take it in their stride.

It does seem odd to be reporting on snow the month after I wrote about seeing our first butterflies though! But mid-month saw some mild sunny days and this was enough to tempt the butterflies out again, plus some other delightful little insects. There were still plenty of showers though, and the month ended on a mild but wet note.

Birds

I am always amazed at the beautiful bright colours of our British birds, including this Blue Tit and Robin in the snow. Whenever I see birds and animals in the snow, I often wonder if they are seeing it for the first time in their short lives, and what they must think of it.

A Blue Tit on a snowy branch in the cemetery — **Blue Tit (above)**

A Robin on a snowy branch in the cemetery — **Robin**

I regularly see Goldfinches in the cemetery. These small finches, which are not much larger than a Blue Tit, make soft chirps to each other as they fly.

Goldfinch on a branch in the cemetery — **Goldfinch**

There are several Wrens in the cemetery, but they usually fly past in a blur of light chestnut-coloured feathers and rarely stay still for very long.

I also saw some small groups of Long-tailed Tits in the cemetery amongst the patches of brambles. They also chirp to each other as they fly – I always hear them before I see them.

I heard my first Chiffchaff of the year in the later part of the month. Its cheerful and distinctive call is a sure sign that Spring has arrived. I didn’t manage to get a photo though – they tend to stay very high up in the trees, and don’t remain still for very long.

Insects

There has been an explosion of activity and colour in the grass verge alongside the cemetery this month. The flowers opened and the small branch of the cemetery wildlife came out to feed on the nectar.

Butterflies

I’ve seen more butterflies than last month, including Small Tortoiseshells and Commas on a few occasions.

Comma on Celandines on the grass verge near the cemetery — **Comma on Lesser Celandines**

I saw my first White butterfly of the year but I only got a quick view. It could have been either a Small, Large or Green-veined White as they all tend to appear at the same time of the year, usually early April.

I also saw my first Red Admiral of the year just a few days before posting this report.

Red Admiral butterfly on a Dandelion on the cemetery verge — **Red Admiral**

I also saw my first Brimstones of the year – the first was in the middle of the month and the second was today. Both were very active males, but this one finally came to rest on a leaf, laying flat against it rather than perching upright.

A male Brimstone Butterfly resting on a dried out leaf — **Brimstone (male)**

That’s five different species of butterfly I’ve seen this month, although they have not been present in large numbers. This is due to the many cold, dull and rainy days we have had, plus wind too – not ideal for butterflies.

Other Insects

I saw a bug of a type I’d never seen before – a Juniper Shield Bug. It was on one of the Daffodils that form the main display near the footpath leading from Spring Bank West to Thoresby Street school. They are a species found mainly in the south of the UK, but they do seem to be spreading further north now.

Juniper Shield Bug on a Daffodil — **Juniper Shield Bug**

I saw lots of hoverflies and several species of Bee, including many large queens looking for suitable places to start a nest. I also saw some of the smaller species such as Common Carder Bee and this Hairy-footed Flower Bee.

Hairy-footed Flower Bee on a Dandelion — **Hairy-footed Flower Bee**

I also just managed to get a quick photo of a Tawny Mining Bee before it took off for pastures, or most probably flowers, new.

Common Carder Bee flying away from a Dandelion — **Tawny Mining Bee in flight**

I also saw lots of Ladybirds, including our native Seven-spot and some of the non-native Harlequins. I’ve also seen the first Bee-flies of the year, but I’ll talk about them next month.

Plants

It doesn’t seem long ago that I was struggling to find any plants that were in flower. Now there are so many that I don’t have space to include photos of them all.

Cultivated Flowers

Although this report is about the cemetery wildlife, some of the cultivated plants are providing a good source of nectar for the insects and are worthy of a mention. This Pulmonaria growing in the Quaker Burial Ground is one such source.

Pulmonaria growing in the Quaker Burial Ground - a good source of food for the cemetery wildlife — **Pulmonaria**

There are also a few Crocus plants growing in the Cemetery, and lots of different varieties of Daffodil – again, a good source of nectar for the insects.

Purple Crocus in the cemetery — **Crocus (above)**

Daffodils in the snow, with a headstone in the background — **Daffodils**

Wild Flowers

We are now starting to see lots of Dandelions in flower. But the most plentiful of the wildflowers at this time of year is the Lesser Celandine, responsible for much of that explosion of colour I mentioned earlier. And very resistant to frost and snow.

A Celandine with a light dusting of snow on it — **Lesser Celandine**

The Snowdrops have almost finished for the year – these were photographed at the beginning of the month.

Snowdrops with a light dusting of snow on them in the cemetery — **Snowdrops**

There are two small clusters of Wood Anemones growing in the grass verge, in the same place as previous years.

Wood Anemone growing in the grass verge near the cemetery — **Wood Anemone**

There is also some Red Dead-nettle growing in the part of the grass verge nearer to Western Cemetery.

Red Dead-nettle just starting to flower — **Red Dead-nettle**

Many of the cemetery’s trees are now in flower, some in the form of catkins and some in the form of a more conventional flower shape. The Blackthorns in the cemetery that only had flowers on them last month now have leaves on them too – that fresh, bright green colour you see at this time of the year.

Blackthorn growing in the cemetery, with leaves and flowers — **Blackthorn**

Conclusion

March has been dominated by cold, wet and windy days but despite these conditions the cemetery wildlife does not seem to have been adversely affected. The grass verge is a lush green and yellow oasis for the insects, and is simply beautiful just to look at during a walk along Spring Bank West.

Coming Up

Next month sees an exciting nature-related event coming to Hull – The City Nature Challenge 2023, which takes place between 28 April and 1 May. It’s being run by iNaturalist, the app where you can record your wildlife sightings on to a national database. Hull is one of 22 UK cities or wider urban areas chosen to take part this year.

Some of you might already have this app on your phones – if so, why not visit the cemetery during this period and record any cemetery wildlife you find there? If you don’t have the app, why not try it? It’s free to download onto any mobile device and is really easy to use. Your observations will help build a picture of what is in our favourite cemetery and who knows – you might find something rare or unusual there!

https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2023-hull

Helen Bovill

Cemetery Wildlife – January 2023

January 29, 2023 by Helen Bovillin Wildlife1 Comment

This month has been a typical midwinter one, with a mix of weather including a week of sub-zero starts to the day. The temperature barely rose above freezing on those days but they were sunny and the frozen footpaths were a lot easier to walk on. Despite the cold temperatures and heavy frost everywhere there was still plenty of cemetery wildlife around.

Birds

A Wood Pigeon looking for berries on the Ivy — **Wood Pigeon**

At the start of the year, I decided I’d start making a list of all the different species of bird I saw within the city boundary. I’m curious to find out how many I can see in a year. At the time of writing I’ve seen a total of 40, 16 of which were in the cemetery. The cemetery ones are Wood Pigeon, Stock Dove, Carrion Crow, Magpie, Robin, Wren, Blackbird, Blackcap, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Coal Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Goldcrest and Dunnock.

Dunnock on the ground in the cemetery — **Dunnock**

One of our volunteers also saw a Great Spotted Woodpecker and a Treecreeper, making a total of 18 bird species seen in the cemetery this year so far. I’ll add to my cemetery list any additional species I see throughout the year and publish the final results in my December 2023 report. Let’s see what rarities or unusual visitors (if any) turn up this year!

I’ve also noticed some activity around the nest boxes as the birds, especially the Tit species, start looking for nesting sites.

Plants

There are now plenty of Snowdrops flowering in clusters around the cemetery. I’ve seen two types – an elongated flower that has a single layer of petals, and a rounder one with a double layer.

A lone single Snowdrop in the sunshine — **Single Snowdrop (above)**

A cluster of double Snowdrops in the Quaker Burial Ground section of the cemetery — **Double Snowdrops**

The Celandines growing in the grass verge alongside Spring Bank West have just started to flower. I saw the first bud in mid-January and they’re almost fully open now. There are only a handful to see at the moment though, and easy to miss as you walk past. The Daffodils are starting to poke the tips of their leaves up through the grass, and a few very early buds are also visible.

Celandine growing in the grass verge on Spring Bank West alongside the cemetery — **Celandine**

Flowers are not just found growing low near to the ground. Look up and you can also see them growing high on the trees in the form of catkins.

The male and female flowers of the Hazel — **Hazel**

The long catkins on this Hazel are male. But Hazel also contains female catkins on the same tree, although the tree cannot pollinate itself. Look closely at the bottom left corner of the photo and also near the top right and you can see the female flowers. They’re just a few red tendrils at the end of a tiny bud.

There are still some berries to sustain the cemetery wildlife, including the ones on this bush, a variety of Skimmia. It looks like some have already been eaten. There are still some berries on the Holly, and the berries are now starting to form on the Ivy although they’re still green. I didn’t find any ripe black ones but I noticed the birds, especially Wood Pigeons, looking for them.

Red berries on a bush in the cemetery — **Skimmia**

I didn’t find any ripe brambles but the leaves look great when covered in frost!

Heavy frost on Bramble leaves — **Bramble**

Fungi

I’ve seen various types of fungi in the cemetery this month. Even in the depths of winter they manage to survive, especially these Velvet Shank that can withstand being frozen solid. The cemetery wildlife must have had difficulty eating them in that state, although they did still show some signs of having been pecked or nibbled.

Some frozen Velvet Shank mushrooms heavily covered in frost — **Velvet Shank frozen on a log**

And look at the thick layer of ice on top of this large, tough bracket fungus, making it difficult to say what species it is.

A bracket fungus with a layer of ice on top — **Bracket Fungus**

I also saw some Candlesnuff Fungus growing around an old tree stump. It’s also known as Stag’s Horn Fungus.

The Antler-like fruiting body of a Candlesnuf Fungus on a tree stump in the cemetery — **Candlesnuff Fungus**

Mammals

The cold weather hasn’t stopped the Squirrels from being as active as they always are. I haven’t seen any foxes but I’ve heard them whilst walking past the cemetery late at night. The females make a plaintive cry, especially at this time of year as it’s their mating season.

Conclusion

It’s been a quiet month for the cemetery wildlife but the birds are thriving. This is probably because the cemetery adjoins several houses, and some of them probably have some well-stocked feeders in their gardens. But I have seen a few tiny insects in the air which is good news for the insectivores! And although most of you will be reading this after the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch (27, 28 and 29 January) has finished you still have until 19 February to submit your results online. The link with more information is shown below. I hope you had an enjoyable hour watching the birds in your gardens!

Link to the RSPB website:-

Big Garden Birdwatch | The RSPB

Helen Bovill

Cemetery Wildlife – December 2022

December 30, 2022December 30, 2022 by Helen Bovillin Wildlife1 Comment

As I was away on holiday for most of the month, December’s column has been written by guest reporter Grace Mount, one of our local volunteers. Here is the cemetery wildlife she found, together with photographs, all taken by her. Enjoy!

December 2022

December started mild and cloudy. There were a few days that were bright and sunny but cold. There was also a far bit of precipitation. It got very cold in the second to third week of December. In places, frost did not thaw in the cemetery because of the low sun light. However, cemetery wildlife seems to have adapted to these conditions, as birds were seen tossing the leaves over to catch hidden worms and the squirrels were very active running about in the tree canopy.

December marks the end of Autumn and the beginning of Winter. The first day of Winter falling on the 21^st is known as the winter solstice which is the shortest day and the longest night.

At the beginning of the month there were still the remaining leaves on the deciduous trees, however most of these had fallen by mid December, leaving just the evergreens behind.

Flowers and Plants

Evergreen plants in the cemetery provide much needed food for the cemetery wildlife in the cold months of winter. Holly and Pyracanthas can be seen growing in the hedge row, along the edge of the cemetery on Spring Bank West. These provide small berries for the birds, such as Blackbirds and Song Thrushes.

Holly (common name) Ilex aquifolium (scientific name) has smooth glossy leaves with spiky edges. There are a handful of very beautiful Holly bushes which can be found growing along the cemetery footpaths including one which has a variegated leaf.

Holly with a variegated leaf growing in the cemetery — **Holly (Ilex aquifolium) with a variegated leaf pattern, and Holly berries (photo at beginning of report)**

Ivy (common name) or Hedera helix (scientific name) carpets the ground in places and can be seen growing up many of the trees; produces flowers in autumn which provides much needed food for Honeybees, and cover for the birds.

Ivy flowers in the cemetery — **Ivy in flower (above)**

Wildlife habitat in the form of Ivy — **Ivy climbing up a tree trunk (above and below)**

Something that was quite unusual for the time of year, which we found, was a single Snowdrop. It was growing and in flower in a spot in the Quaker burial ground. These would usually start to flower between January and March, with the daylight hours getting longer.

Snowdrop in the QBG part of the cemetery — **A single Snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis) in the Quaker burial ground**

Yew trees, another evergreen, can be found growing in the Quaker part of the cemetery along with laurels, again providing much needed cover for cemetery wildlife in the cold winter months.

Moss can be found growing on gravestones and fallen branches.

Moss on a fallen gravestone in the cemetery — **Some moss on a fallen grave**

Birds

For December we saw Robins pulling worms out of the ground and Blackbirds flicking leaves over in search of hidden insects. They were very active in the Quaker part of the cemetery. Magpies, Crows and Woodpigeons were also easy to spot with there being no leaves on the trees.

A Robin in the QBG — **Robin (above) and Blackbird (below)**

Mushrooms and Fungi

A selection of fungi also found in the cemetery.

Fungus — **Velvet Shank (above and both photos below)**

Conclusion

December was mild at first with a very uncomfortable cold snap in the middle becoming mild again towards the end of the month. The footpaths that had been muddy were well trodden but frozen hard on the coldest days. Despite the cold weather it seems the cemetery wildlife continues to give many delightful and unexpected surprises with beautiful fungi, traditional seasonal evergreens, out of season flowers and amusing antics from the birds and squirrels.

Grace is home educated, following her interests of nature and animal studies. She loves birds and has helped the volunteers in HGC with monitoring and recording of the nest boxes. She frequently enjoys walks through the cemetery, litter picking and taking note of the changing seasons.

Helen Bovill

Cemetery Wildlife – November 2022

November 28, 2022 by Helen Bovillin News, Volunteers, Wildlife

What a wet month this has been! It was still quite mild at the start, but it got colder towards the end and there was even a light frost on at least one of those days. Despite all the rain the volunteers still managed to set hundreds of wildflower plants in the grass verge along Spring Bank West. These were provided by the Council and some of the Council officers also helped us to plant them. This will hopefully help to increase the biodiversity of the cemetery wildlife. We are all looking forward to seeing the plants growing and flowering next year!

Birds

I’ve started this report with a Goldfinch because her bright colours were a welcome sight on a dull, wet day. The difference between the male and female of this species is very subtle – please see link at the end of this report containing more information.

I’ve seen plenty of Blue Tits, Great Tits and Chaffinches in the cemetery. These seem to be the commonest of the small birds – I see them every day without fail. Small groups of Chaffinches can often be seen feeding on the ground. The females are pale brown and at a glance can sometimes look like Sparrows.

I usually see at least one Robin although there are several of these highly territorial and inquisitive birds around. I also saw a small flock of Long-tailed Tits calling to each other as they foraged for insects in the trees.

I’m happy to report regular sightings of Coal Tits again. These are the same size, possibly slightly smaller, than Blue Tits.

As you can see it lacks the blue and yellow colours of the Blue Tit and instead has light brown sides. It has a white patch on top of its black head.

Nest Box Survey and Maintenance

Earlier this month we did our annual check of the nest boxes to see which ones had been used. To qualify as “used” the box had to contain a complete nest. Many of those nests were tightly packed into the nest boxes – note the slightly squared corners of this one.

We found a variety of materials had been used. The one above seems to have been made from a white man-made material (possibly some sort of stuffing) and the outside of a tennis ball (green material). But most were made of mainly natural materials such as moss and plant stems.

We also found a few of the boxes contained unhatched eggs – more than last year. I wonder if the hot summer weather encouraged the birds to try for a second or even a third brood? The cold weather would then have arrived before the eggs had time to hatch. One nest contained a dead chick that hadn’t managed to fledge and another nest contained the skeleton of what appeared to be a chick. We also found quite a lot of woodlice in the nests. All the old nests and nest material were removed from the boxes leaving them nice and clear for next year’s inhabitants.

Conclusion of Survey

We checked a total of 51 boxes and found that 31 of them had been used, giving an occupancy rate of 60.78%. It’s impossible to produce a completely scientific analysis of what constitutes a successful nest box because there are so many different factors involved. Design of box, size of entrance hole, position in the cemetery such as being near houses, near a road or footpath and so on all have to be considered.

Nevertheless a pattern has emerged over the 3 years we’ve been monitoring the nest boxes. It seems the boxes in the most central parts of the cemetery were least likely to be used; those near the footpaths had good occupancy rates. This includes the footpath nearest to Spring Bank West. This was a surprise considering how busy that road can often be. We also have a total of 13 boxes that have been used every year. But it does seem that we now have more than enough boxes for the existing bird population.

And the inhabitants of the boxes? Mainly Blue Tits, Great Tits and possibly Coal Tits. And Pigeons in the only one of the two Owl boxes we have that had been occupied this year. The other Owl box had not been used and still contained the nesting material we’d put there (as recommended) in the same condition that we left it in. Good proof that our boxes are nice and waterproof!

Trees and Plants

There were some lovely colours on the trees in the early and middle parts of the month.

The rain really brought out those colours, especially on the leaves of the Norway Maples.

There are still plenty of fruits on the Pyracantha and the Holly, and I even found some Brambles still ripening. But all are great sources of food for the cemetery wildlife to eat.

There were hardly any plants in flower this month. I did manage to find some Red Campion though.

I can usually rely on the grass verge along Spring Bank West to provide some flowers, but this month I only found a couple of Dandelions and a bit of Groundsel. The flowers of the Groundsel never open fully – instead they stay compacted in a tubular shape that’s slightly wider at the top.

But because we set so many new plants along the grass verge it should look even better than usual next Spring and Summer. I’ll be able to tell you which have flourished because I’ve been monitoring the verge for a few years now and I know what’s usually there.

Insects and Other Small Creatures

I saw one butterfly right at the start of the month, this female Large White. She looked a bit faded and her two black spots were only just visible. The male has no spots.

I still keep seeing Ladybirds in various places around the cemetery, and hoverflies and bees feeding on the Ivy flowers. Then I found these on a fallen log a few days ago and wondered what they could be.

It turns out they’re either snail or slug eggs. I think they’re most likely to be slug eggs because I couldn’t see any shell markings on their insides. I will keep checking them though, provided they don’t get eaten by the cemetery wildlife!

Mushrooms

November has been a good month for mushrooms and fungi, including Velvet Shank and Jelly Ear. But as usual I haven’t been able to identify all of them for certain. I also noticed some Silverleaf Fungus starting to appear again on the same fallen log as in previous years.

Conclusion

November has been a very wet month but it hasn’t prevented the volunteers from carrying out the jobs we usually do at this time of the year. This includes placing poppies on the headstones of the war dead. And for the first time, both of our commemorative bird boxes (one for WW1 and the other for WW2) have been occupied. But both of them by birds I hasten to add. It is very rewarding to see human-related objects being used by the cemetery wildlife!

Link to more information on those commemorated on the nest boxes:- https://friendsofhullgeneralcemetery.com/history/war-dead/

Link to information on the differences between male and female Goldfinches:- https://birdfact.com/articles/female-european-goldfinches

Helen Bovill

Cemetery Wildlife October 2022

October 29, 2022October 29, 2022 by Helen Bovillin Wildlife2 Comments

October has been a typical mid-Autumn month, with a mixture of rain, cool dull days and warmer than average sunny days. The cemetery and grass verge are green and healthy, and there are plenty of berries and fungi to provide sustenance for the cemetery wildlife. The Summer drought seems to be a distant memory.

Trees and Shrubs

Many of the trees and shrubs are now bearing fruit.

There is plenty of Pyracantha growing along the back of the grass verge. It looks particularly vibrant at the moment and makes up for the lack of colourful flowers elsewhere.

Pyracantha on edge of cemetery — **Pyracantha**

There are some fruits on one of the Yew trees growing at the front of the grass verge. But these fruits are actually known as arils rather than berries because the seed is not fully enclosed. Were you to look inside the red casing you would see the seed at the back of it. My description of them in last month’s report is therefore incorrect!

I’ve also seen berries on some of the Holly bushes growing in various places inside the cemetery and a few of the bramble bushes still have fruit ripening on them.

The ground is becoming covered in the fruits of many of the cemetery’s trees, including the Lime. This particular one caught my attention because of the large knobbly growths on its trunk. These are known as burrs. I’ve inserted a link at the end of this report containing more information about what causes them.

The trees and shrubs are also starting to show some lovely autumnal colours, including this Forsythia growing at the side of the entrance gates. This is the shrub that provides a glorious array of yellow flowers in the springtime.

Forsythia at the cemetery gates — **Forsythia with Greenbottle and Ladybird**

Flowers

I didn’t find many flowers this month. Not the traditional-looking ones anyway. There is still some Ragwort growing on the grass verge, together with a few Dandelions and some Smooth Sow-thistle.

Ragwort on the grass verge beside the cemetery — **Ragwort (above)**

Smooth Sow-thistle growing near the cemetery — **Smooth Sow-thistle (above)**

However, there is an abundance of flowers on the Ivy plants that are growing skywards all around the cemetery. They provide a great source of food for the insect branch of the cemetery wildlife. On a sunny day they are abuzz with the sound of Bees and other small insects.

Dronefly on Ivy Flower — **Ivy Flower with European Dronefly**

Insects

There are still plenty of Ladybirds around – native ones as well as Harlequins. I’m still seeing Hoverflies and I even saw a few Butterflies earlier in the month.

Small White Butterfly (male) — **Small White (male) (above)**

Speckled Wood Butterfly — **Speckled Wood (above)**

Mushrooms

Remember the one I told you about last month that had fungi growing on it? This is what it looked like a couple of weeks ago!

I found a lot of small mushrooms of various types, including these Velvet Shank, some partially eaten by the cemetery wildlife.

Velvet Shank Mushrooms growing on a log in the cemetery — **Velvet Shank**

Mushrooms can be hard to identify due to their often rapidly changing appearance. I’ve therefore just summarised what I found this month without giving definitive identifications. In any case there’s always the danger of giving an identification as an edible one and then it turns out to be poisonous. However, I would not advocate any form of foraging in the cemetery – it’s only a relatively small site and the fungi should be left for the cemetery wildlife to eat. Most of these mushrooms are tiny anyway.

Birds

I have no unusual avian visitors to report this month. I’ve seen just the usual Blackbirds, Robins, Wood Pigeons, Crows and Magpies. I regularly see Goldfinches and Coal Tits now, plus the occasional Dunnock and Thrush. But the small birds that seem to be the most abundant are Chaffinches, Blue Tits and Great Tits. They’ve had a very successful year.

Conclusion

The cemetery is looking good at the moment and is always an excellent place for a leisurely stroll. But the month ended on a very wet note with lots of heavy showers and the footpaths are rather waterlogged at the moment. The best path to walk on at the moment is the southern one – that’s the one that is nearest to Spring Bank West.

And now for a question – do you prefer to see the names of the plants and animals ON the photos or UNDERNEATH them? I started showing them underneath the photos last month and just wondered what you thought of the change. I can easily revert back to putting the names on the photos if necessary!

Useful link:-

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2019/06/what-is-growing-on-my-tree/

Helen Bovill

Cemetery Wildlife – September 2022

September 29, 2022October 3, 2022 by Helen Bovillin Wildlife1 Comment

The first week of September started well, with a few heavy though not prolonged showers providing some much-needed moisture to sustain the cemetery wildlife.

September contains the first day of Autumn, regardless of what day Autumn begins, be it the 1^st (meteorological) or the 23^rd (astronomical). There were already plenty of fallen leaves carpeting the ground at the start of the month – these had already started to fall in August due to the hot dry weather of that month. This is known as a “False Autumn”, where the trees relinquish their leaves early in order to save water.

Flowers and Plants

That rain arrived not a moment too soon, and the grass verge alongside the cemetery on Spring Bank West is green again. Dandelions have reappeared together with some similar looking but smaller yellow flowers – Autumn Hawkbit and Cats-ear.

Autumn Hawkbit on the grass verge alongside the cemetery — ***Autumn Hawkbit (above)***

Cat's-ear - flower and leaf — **Cat’s-ear (above)**

The two plants look very similar, but the Hawkbit has red markings under the petals and smooth leaves. Cat’s-ear has hairy leaves. The Ragwort is also flowering again, and I found some Hedge Mustard and Wood Avens – both have tiny yellow flowers.

I didn’t find many plants in flower this month. Most of the ones I found have yellow flowers but I did find some Common Hogweed and Daisies (white flowers) and some Cyclamen.

Cyclamen growing inside the cemetery — ***Cyclamen***

I also found some Oxalis on one of the footpaths in the cemetery, but just a few leaves and no flowers.

Oxalis leaves in the cemetery — ***Oxalis***

Lots of the trees and shrubs in the cemetery now have berries on them – a great source of food for the cemetery wildlife. In the Quaker Burial Ground the Yew trees have produced lots of berries.

Walking past there towards Western Cemetery, the Broad-leaved Whitebeam at the end of the path has lots of orange berries on it.

The orange berries of the Whitebeam — **Broad-leaved Whitebeam**

The naturalised Rose bushes inside the Cemetery have some fruits or hips on them.

Rose hips - perfect for the cemetery wildlife — **Rose Hips**

The Blackthorn has some berries too, although I only found them as either singles or growing in groups of two or three.

Blackthorn or Sloe Berries in the cemetery — **Blackthorn or Sloe Berries**

Many of the Bramble plants fruited quite early but there are still some fruits at all stages of ripening on the plants, including some uneaten fruits. The seeds inside those fruits are still very useful to birds such as Bullfinches. The Dogwood bushes have plenty of black berries on them – a particular favourite of Wood Pigeons and Blackbirds it seems.

Birds

This month I’m going to feature those members of the Corvid family that can be found in the Cemetery, namely Carrion Crows and Magpies. There are several of each to be seen. Both make a particularly loud cawing noise, sometimes an indication of a predator lurking nearby.

A Carrion Crow on a branch high up in the cemetery — ***Carrion Crow (above)***

A Magpie in the cemetery — **Magpie (above)**

The Corvid family also includes Rooks, Ravens and Jays. I’ve never seen any of these in the Cemetery but a couple of Jays have been seen in the adjoining Western Cemetery by a visitor a few months ago.

The usual smaller birds are around in good numbers – Blackbirds, Chaffinches, Goldfinches, Blue Tits, Great Tits, Robins and Wrens. I also saw a Coal tit – usually I see a couple of them most days but I haven’t seen any for a few weeks, so it was nice to finally see one again. I also caught brief glimpses of a Blackcap and a Treecreeper.

Insects

And now a first for the Cemetery – a Southern Oak Bush-cricket. These are relatively new arrivals to the UK, the first records being in the south of the country in 2001. They’re expanding northwards, and this could be one of the most northerly sightings so far. They’re usually found high up in the tree canopy but also appear in lower shrubs. This one is a female.

Southern Oak Bush-cricket on a headstone in the cemetery — **Southern Oak Bush-cricket**

There are still a few Butterflies around – I saw a Red Admiral near the Cholera Monument, and a Small White along the grass verge. The species I’ve seen most often though is the Speckled Wood, often flying high up in the trees and then coming to rest on the ground.

Speckled Wood inside the cemetery — **Speckled Wood**

There are still plenty of Ladybirds around, both native and Harlequin. I found quite a lot on the sunny sides of headstones as well as on the vegetation. This 7-Spot is one of our native species.

7-Spot Ladybird on an Oak leaf in tjee cemetery — **7-Spot Ladybird on Turkey Oak Leaf**

I’m also still seeing hoverflies, including this Common Banded one.

**Common Banded Hoverfly on Autumn Hawkbit**

Mushrooms

I found this interesting mushroom growing on a grave – it’s a type of Bolete. It started off larger and paler than in the photo and now it’s shrivelled to a much smaller size. Parts have been eaten by the cemetery wildlife too.

A mushroom growing out of a grave in the cemetery — **Bolete Mushroom – side and top views**

There are quite a number of mushrooms in the cemetery at the moment. They can be quite difficult to identify accurately as their appearance can change quite quickly. This one started off smooth on top, and now it has its own fungus on it!

Mushroom with its own fungus in the cemetery — **Mushroom with fungus**

There are some tiny Inkcaps growing along some of the paths, and jelly-like fungus on some fallen trees.

Inkcap mushroom in the cemetery

Jelly-type fungus on a fallen tree in the cemetery

Conclusion

The only significant rainfall was early in the month. Since then, it has been cool and the footpaths are dry again, making an early Autumn stroll around the cemetery easy. Do pop in there and look at the cemetery wildlife – you might spot something I haven’t noticed yet!

Robin on a headstone in the cemetery

Link to further information about fungi –

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/fungi-and-lichens/

Helen Bovill