Author: mwn_admin

We love the amazing St Mary’s Cemetery, for its biodiversity potential, but also because of the stories woven into it. If you’ve been to any of the Commonwealth War Graves tours that have been running, you will know exactly what we mean.

EICSP (a Scottish non-denominational charity that provides events around global spiritual traditions) is running an online Zoom meeting covering the many aspects of our graveyards and culture around them.

Event: Cemeteries: Spiritual, Therapeutic, Social, and Cultural Perspectives.

Date: Wednesday 30 October 2024.

Time: 7pm-9pm (UK time).

Format: There will be five talks, each of 12 minutes, followed by 20 minutes of discussion among the speakers and the chair, followed by Q & A. Sign up here! https://www.eicsp.org/events/event-details/1208-online-zoom-forum-cemeteries-spiritual-therapeutic-social-and-cultural-perspectives-30-october-2024

This autumn, help Plantlife find the UK’s most colourful and important fungi – waxcaps.

The UK is home to some of the most important waxcap grasslands in the world. However many species are becoming rare and declining; they need identifying and protecting.

Waxcaps are an indicator of rare, species-rich grassland. Knowing where waxcaps and other grassland fungi are thriving helps us pinpoint where fragments of ancient meadows survive, so they can be protected for the future.

Not just important for the hundreds of wildflowers they can be home to, these ancient grasslands are also crucial in the fight against climate change. Species-rich grassland can store up to a third more carbon than areas with just a few species. You can help the Plantlife effort to record waxcaps here.

MWN certainly know that a diverse array of species are thriving in our historic churchyards and cemeteries, as a quick glance at our St Mary’s Graveyard iNaturalist project will attest!

You may remember the Bioblitz that was run in association with Hull Natural History Society. Well the results of this UK wide survey are now available! From the article:

In June communities across the UK united to celebrate Love Your Burial Ground Week, Churches Count on Nature, and National Cemeteries Week, with more than 300 events highlighting the unique blend of history, nature, and community found within local churchyards and cemeteries. 

The Churches Count on Nature initiative, organised by Caring for God’s Acre and supported by the Church of England, the Church in Wales, and A Rocha UK, has generated an impressive collection of wildlife records that are still coming in.

Participants contributed by visiting their local churchyards and cemeteries to record the wildlife they encountered, from wildflowers to insects, birds, and mammals. During the last four years more than 43,700 records have been submitted, with more expected this year as data continues to be processed.

Read the full article here.

You may have taken part in the 2024 Big Butterfly Count from Butterfly Conservation We’ve reported on the results of this in previous years, but if you have been out in nature over the summer you may well have noticed a decline in the number of butterflies this year compared to previous years.

This decline has been enough for Butterfly Conservation launch a call to action to get the Government to take positive action, particularly for an immediate and permanent ban on butterfly-harming neonicotinoid pesticides, without exceptions. For more information see the Butterfly Conservation website.

Hull & East Riding Friends of the Earth annual Green Fair will be held in Hull Minster on Saturday 5th October 2024. This is an opportunity to learn about and talk to various local environmental charities, community groups, as well as purchase from environmental, and ethical stalls. If you are interested in finding out more (or would like as stall), please get in touch with Claire on hello@hfoe.org.uk.

More information on the FOE website!

The latest Yorkshire Wildlife Trusts event guide is available, covering October 2024 through to March 2025.

Grab it in PDF direct from the YWT website!

The Active Communities team, work across the East Riding to help improve opportunities for residents and groups to be more physically, mentally and socially active in their communities.

Taking part in this short consultation will help ERYC understand how active people are in their communities, whilst discovering any gaps and barriers to taking part.

ERYC’s aim is to use this data to improve and strengthen health and wellbeing provision in your community.

Please help the consultation out with your responses here.

Join a conversation with Plantlife and an expert panel of fungi enthusiasts to discuss the magical world of fungi, the threats to their survival and how we can all play our part in their future.

In this hour long webinar, some of the big questions will be posed to the panel and you’ll have a chance to ask your questions too.

Save the date Thursday 3 October, 7pm and register for the FREE event here.

There is an update on the 30th of September as for an update on progress of the Hull and East Yorkshire Local Nature Recovery Strategy (HEY LNRS). There will also be an opportunity to ask questions. This webinar will be recorded and uploaded to the East Riding of Yorkshire Council YouTube channel, where you can find previous HEY LNRS webinars available to watch. 

You can register for this Microsoft Teams event here: HEY LNRS

Reposted from the Wolds Hedgehog Rescue Facebook page:

After our successful Christmas sales last year we have been invited to even more fund raising events this year. To do this we need to increase the amount of hedgehog related crafts we make, to do that we need volunteer crafters who can help us. If you are interested in helping to make things and would like patterns, wool, material or advice, support or a demonstration on how to make something then please ask Ann on 07722483845.

Ideas of things we need help making:

Tote bags / rucksacks / Christmas boots / glitter wool hedgehogs / baubles – decoupage and other types / felted hedgehogs / key rings / wooden hedgehogs / wreaths / pinecone hedgehogs, just to name some.

If you can sew but not knit or knit but not sew then we can find you jobs and it’s not a problem. We would love to hear from you and invite you too our occasional crafting sessions. Without fund raising we can’t continue the work we do to the extent we do it.