Wildlife recorded in the City of London Cemetery

Birds, Insects, Mammals

For Plants click here

 

Birds

The cemetery, in its location adjacent to so many other wildlife areas and its wealth of planted vegetation, means that a good variety of birds - albeit many of the "garden" varieties - are usually present. In this list only those species that have been seen in the cemetery, or are commonly seen overhead, have been included, and not those that may casually pass overhead. Those in ordinary font are thought to be usually present (in their season), those in italics rare or visitors, and those in bold may breed.

 

BIRDS
Grey Heron May be seen flying over, and occasionally visit the ponds - which contain some tasty fish!
Mallard Occasional in the ponds
Sparrowhawk Can sometimes be seen overhead, or hunting through the trees
Hobby Occasional
Kestrel Can sometimes be seen overhead,
Common Gull Frequently seen overhead
Wood Pigeon Common
Feral Pigeon Uncommon
Collared Dove Fairly Common
Tawny Owl Uncommon, but may be heard in the cemetery
Swift A common summer sight
Green Woodpecker Quite common
Great Spotted Woodpecker Quite common
Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Uncommon - not recorded for some years
Swallow Passage in Spring and Autumn with some during the Summer
House Martin Much less common now
Pied Wagtail Uncommon
Wren Common
Dunnock Common
Blackcap Fairly common
Willow Warbler Uncommon
Chiffchaff Fairly Common
Goldcrest Uncommon
Robin Common
Fieldfare Sometimes seen in Winter
Blackbird Common
Redwing Sometimes seen in Winter
Song Thrush Often seen and heard
Mistle Thrush Fairly Common
Long-tailed Tit Common
Coal Tit Uncommon - but in2009/10 one of the better places in the general area to see this species
Blue Tit Common
Great Tit Common
Chaffinch Common
Greenfinch Common
Goldfinch Quite common, particularly in winter
Bullfinch Very uncommon
House Sparrow Uncommon - but increasing
Starling Common
Jay Common
Magpie Common
Carrion Crow Common
Ring-necked Parakeet One reported on 23 November 2005, but in 2010 increasingly heard flying over
   
   

 

Insects


About 20 species of Butterfly have been seen here, and many moths. Other insects include a variety of Grasshoppers and Crickets including Roesel's Bush Cricket Metrioptera roeselii. Some of the insects recorded are listed below.

 

BUTTERFLIES  
Large Skipper Ochlodes venatus  
Essex Skipper Thymelicus lineola  
Small Skipper Thymelicus sylvestris  
Common Blue Polyommatus icarus  
Large White Pieris brassicae
 
Green-veined White Pieris napi
 
Meadow Brown Maniola jurtina  
Red Admiral Vanessa atalanta  
Small Copper Lycaena phlaeas  
Small Heath Coenonympha pamhilus  
Small Tortoiseshell Aglais urticae  
Small White Artogeia rapae
 
Speckled Wood Pararge aegeria
 
Peacock Inachis io  
Comma Polygonia c-album  
 
MOTHS  
Cinnabar Tyria jacobaeae  
Grass Moths    
 
DRAGONFLIES and DAMSELFLIES  
Common Darter Sympetrum striolatum
 
Common Blue Damselfly Polyommatus icarus  
Azure Damselfly Coenagrion puella  
 
GRASSHOPPERS and CRICKETS  
Roesel's Bush-cricket Metrioptera roeselii  
Meadow Grasshopper Chorthippus parallelus  
Common Green Grasshopper Omocestulus viridulus  
Common Field Grasshopper Chorthippus brunneus
 
Long winged cone-head Conocephalus dorsalis  
 
OTHER INSECTS AND SPIDERS  
awaiting information    
     
     
 

 

Mammals

 

MAMMALS  
Hedgehog Erinaceus europaeus There seems to be a healthy population of these in the cemetery (2020)
Mole Talpa europaea Mole hills are often seen, particularly in the soft soils on the Roding embankments
Shrew Sorex araneus Can sometimes be heard in the rougher grassland
Red Fox Vulpes vulpes A very common resident, and very "tame" in the neighbourhood of the cafeteria
Squirrel Sciuris caroliensis Vey common
Muntjac Muntiacus reevesi Two or so of these have been seen by cemetery staff in recent years (2020)