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Nature & Wildlife
Spring
The footpath along Jervis Lum goes through an ancient woodland: there has been woodland there continuously since before 1600. Every spring the floor of the woodland bursts into flower with wild garlic and bluebells which have spread over many centuries. Sheffield has more ancient woodland within its boundaries than any other city in the UK, remnants of the hunting parks which covered much of the countryside.
The famous double avenue of Turkey Oaks leads up from the Granville Road entrance to the park. Turkey oaks are not native to the UK, but they support a huge variety of insects which are food for many of our smaller bird species, including the smallest UK bird, the goldcrest. (which weighs about the same as a 2 pence coin)
The oaks around the park are home to nesting squirrels, nuthatches and blue tits, who all take advantage of holes in the tree trunks and branches. In the spring you might see blue tits and nuthatches scrapping it out for the best nest sites. Nuthatches often do a spot of home improvement on their nests, adding mud to make sure the entrance hole is their preferred size.
Norfolk Park’s avenue of lime trees leads up from the Norfolk Park Road entrance: in the spring and summer you will hear the hum of worker bees visiting the lime tree flowers.
Summer
The summer brings visitors to Norfolk Park; the skies above the park welcome swallows, housemartins and swifts. They will be hunting for insects, including aphids.
Swifts are unique - they stay airborne all their lives, only touching ground to nest. (their Latin name ‘apus apus’ means ‘no feet’ as it was once believed that they didn’t have any!) Look out for the swift nest-boxes on the rounded end of the Centre in the Park, opposite the main children's play area.
Autumn
At the end of the summer, look for the blackberries between the football pitches and the Student Village - one of the best blackberrying spots in Sheffield.
Jays spend the autumn in the oak avenue, gathering acorns to bury elsewhere (possibly on Skye Edge). In the autumn you may see a jay flying away from the park with an acorn in its beak - it will probably be carrying up to seven more acorns concealed in its crop and throat.
Most of the birds have stopped singing by now, but you will still hear the robin and the song thrush, especially in the morning and at dusk.
The Merlin App is a great way to identify birdsong.
If you hear an unfamiliar squeaking call at dusk, look up: it may be ring-necked parakeets making their way across Sheffield to their roosting site at Brightside Lane in Attercliffe. These parakeets are definitely not native, they are the descendants of former pet birds. Graves Park has had a parakeet population for several years, but so far they are passing visitors to Norfolk Park.
Winter
Winter visitors to the park include redwings, fieldfares and occasional waxwings, all here from Scandinavia to feast on the winter berries.
On a snowy winter’s day, you may see foxes at dusk, scavenging for food. They will scavenge for rubbish, but still prefer to hunt for rabbits and rats - there are no rabbits in Norfolk Park but there is a resident rat population.
Photographs from Our Visitors
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