Page 44 - BBC Wildlife Volume 36 #11

CHURCHYARD WILDLIFE

Life among the tombstones...

It is tempting to think of a have run out in a few years. The only reptile to be MOLE The least often
churchyard as a single entity, It seems likely that early 4 found at all frequently in 7 seen but perhaps the
but in reality it is a multitude Christianity took over some churchyards is the SLOW- commonest churchyard
of diferent habitats, each ancient and still unknown WORM, a legless lizard. It mammal, its subterranean
appropriate for a diferent pagan association of yews basks on graves and warm tunnelling betrayed by
range of species. The most with sacred ritual and built its heaps of grass cuttings, and mounds of soil among
important among the larger churches on the same sites. has a fondness for compost gravestones. Headstones 9
of these habitats are the bins, where it hunts slugs. and even co ns have been
soil, the gravestones and the One of the commonest disturbed by mole activity.
area immediately around 2 of all churchyard lichens The SNAKE’S HEAD
each grave, the diferent – and one of the most 5 FRITILLARY is possibly The unmistakable vivid
parts of the church building, beautiful – is the GOLDEN a native species and a truly 8red flowers of the FIELD
the enclosing churchyard CRUSTOSE, Caloplaca exquisite spring-flowering POPPY are as welcome in
boundary, trees, shrubs, flavescens, which is found plant. It flourishes in some churchyards as they are
paths and storage or compost on base-rich headstones undisturbed churchyards unwelcome to farmers in their
areas. Within each of these almost everywhere in with damp, moisture- role as cornfield weeds. They
are smaller micro-habitats lowland Britain. retentive soil, where it may may, however, indicate an
– all important in their own be a relict plant of ancient ancient agricultural use for
individual way. It’s neither common meadowland. churchyard land.
3 nor widespread, but
The tree most associated the GRAVEYARD BEETLE There are no more No mammals are
1with churchyards is that cannot escape a mention 6 beautiful toadstools 9 more associated with
noble conifer, the YEW – because it is the only creature than the WAXCAPS, but churchyards than BATS.
though the connection is still specifically named after this unlike almost all other Although ‘bats in the belfry’
not clear. It cannot be for the habitat. Though it seems churchyard species, they is an expression known to
oft-quoted reason to supply unsavoury to us, thrive in closely mown turf everyone, it is actually the last
archers with longbow wood: it is attracted to recently which mimics heavily grazed place in a church you should
given the size of a medieval buried corpses, perhaps to grassland – always provided expect to find them because
army, the supply would feed on the maggots. no fertiliser has been used. it is too cold.

burial for many years and their ancient graves and a relative lack of disturbance means
are rarely visited. Many old Jewish cemeteries the churchyard may represent a trapped
are also enclosed, seldom visited and in some fragment of the landscape that existed in the
instances only accessible by arrangement. area when it was created. Potentially it could
All these features together contribute to the include species of plants and even small
most important attribute of all: these often- animals that largely disappeared from the
wild places are relatively undisturbed. surrounding area many centuries ago
and so represent a real microcosm of long-
Grave concerns lost settlements or landscapes – a window
While the legal requirement for churchyards into a truly ancient time. 7
to be enclosed dates from the early 17th But what are the uniquely valuable and
century, many were enclosed at a much special features of those ancient landscapes;
earlier time, and although no one knows what wildlife treasure might they contain? 6
which is the oldest continuously isolated This will depend significantly on where in
ustrat on by M ke Langman; gravestone: Andrew Baskott/A amy
British churchyard, it will almost certainly the country the churchyard lies. Leaving aside
date from the major period of church the mountainous or upland areas of England,
building between the time of the Scotland and Wales, which have their
Norman conquest in the mid-11th own complex ancestry, the English
century and the early 15th century. lowlands can be divided crudely
This and other similarly ancient east and west of a line from the
burial places may easily, Humber south towards the
therefore, have experienced New Forest. To the west is
at least 600 years of land with geometrically
enclosure and protection; fairly regular, hedged Left: crumbling old
gravestones are
600 years of more or fields that originated with
perfect habitats for
less peace and quiet. Such the 18th and 19th century mosses and slow-
a long period of corralling Enclosure Acts. A rural
I growing lichen.

44 BBC Wildlife