Our Living Churchyard - May

Have you heard the cuckoo yet this year? Or seen a Brimstone or Orange-tip butterfly? Longer days, the warmth of the sun instead of the chill of a cold wind, primroses, daffodils: the obvious signs of spring are uplifting to the soul and hard to miss. But what else is there to see if we look more closely?

You may feel that dandelions are pretty commonplace, but look more carefully and see what critters call them home. No doubt you’ll see bees, but there’s also a variety of different hoverflies, feeding on the nectar. Now get closer still – get down on your hands and knees – and you’ll see that there’s yet more there – a tiny beetle, no more than one or two millimetres long, is struggling to clamber over the petals, finding its way among what, to it, must be like a forest of fallen tree trunks.

On my last visit, a small flock of jackdaws was feeding in the churchyard. What has brought them here today? They feed on insects and seeds among other things: what has attracted them? What is there that was not there before? What has beaten down pathways through the grass? Most mammals are nocturnal, so we won’t see them in the daytime, but have a look in the evening or early morning and tell me what you see.

As tragedy and horror unfold daily in Ukraine, we must feel more than ever blessed by the peace and beauty of Sussex, and more than ever conscious of the need for proper stewardship of this precious jewel that has been entrusted to us.

Would you like to get involved with this?

I was most grateful last year to a number of willing volunteers who helped cut the grass and
rake up all the hay – an essential step to ensure that the coarse grasses don’t swamp out the
more delicate plants that provide homes for wildlife.

More volunteers are always welcome. Not only with the cutting and raking, which we shall do at the end of August, but also with visiting the area, particularly during the summer months, and recording what you see.
The more people who look for wildlife here, the more we shall see: it’s so easy to miss tiny creatures,
and fresh eyes will spot what others miss.

If you’d like to accompany me on a recording session, you’d be more than welcome.
Please do get in touch with me and I’d be delighted to have your company.

Nigel Symington
nigel.symington@gmail.com