Being surrounded by green nature is proven to make us feel better and be good for our mental health. We can gain so much from just noticing what nature is around us, even in a wet, cold and seemingly quiet month like January (and February – extended)! To help start the new year off with a bit of fun and enjoy the nature around us, we have an FNW treasure hunt for you to complete in your household units at your own time.
Below are clues to animals, plants, features and other things related to nature that you can see on Normandy Common. When you’ve answered the clues, go out for a lovely walk, enjoy the Common and photograph the items.
The competition has now closed and the answers to the treasure hunt can be found here. Congratulatons to Ruby Merriman, the winner, who had all but one of the answers correct, with fantastic photos too. She’s the worthy recipient of a bird nesting box and an FSC reptiles and amphibians identification guide. Well done Ruby and enjoy your prizes! Thanks to everyone that sent in entries and we hope more of you enjoyed the treasure hunt, and it’s still there for others to enjoy, even if the competition is closed.
Trees
You can find all these trees on the Common. Some are more common than others!
- Its leaf is in the National Trust logo
- Daughter of Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin
- This part of a sewing machine will spin your thread right ’round
- Female co-presenter of ITV’s This Morning
- Related to a female sheep?
Animals
Anagrams of the names of animals found on the Common.
- 6. REQSILRU
- 7. IRNBO
- 8. RAGBED (okay, you probably won’t see this animal, but you can photograph its home)
- 9. LOYHL ALFE REINM (hint: a very tiny animal – again, you won’t see it, but can see evidence it’s been there)
- 10. OSOLUWDOE
Management of Normandy Common
There are things you can see showing the management interventions on the Common to help keep wildlife and habitats thriving there. Solve these clues to find some examples of these.
Most of these activities are made up of two words with a clue for each, except for clue 5 which is just one word. For example, “The beaches in France invaded on D-Day; The opposite of rare” would be “Normandy Common”.
- 11. Essential to play cricket, baseball or rounders; Home deliveries are often reliant on these cardboard vessels
- 12. To get rid of an unwanted friend; A closing down sale offering cheap prices
- 13. The captain of the Enterprise on Star Trek would always keep one of these to record all their activities and discoveries; The depth of a carpet
- 14. “The ________ and the ivy…”; A bald man’s son’s concern
- 15. Slang for a policeman; Decoration on a cake (remember, this answer is just one word)
When, where, what on the Common
Features or items you can see on the Common.
- 16. What is no man?
- 17. Where can you see a photo of a flying mammal?
- 18. When a panda’s favourite has escaped
- 19. Where a life support system is unearthed, but still functioning
- 20. Where a Holiday Inn is provided for insects
Plants and their close friends
Some riddles for our final round.
21. I can take over like the kraken,
In places where pH is a lacking,
Covering 3% of the UK,
And 90% of my mass is hidden away,
I’m the often ignored________.
22. For people, I’m a large item in potpourri,
Or a decoration alongside the Christmas tree,
Filled with fat to give birds a feed,
In nature, I safely hold the seed,
And if I land on your head, I’m so sorry!
23. I’m sometimes a foe, damaging trees, buildings and maybe a crop,
But faster than ever to break down the plastic bottle from your pop,
I have 3.8 million species worldwide,
Yet from science over 90% of those still hide,
Many hallucinogenic, others used in beer to make your lager top.
24. In the northern hemisphere I prefer the north side,
I’m where the resilient water bear will reside,
Surprisingly, I have no root,
From pristine lawns I’m given the boot,
As I soak up water plants like it by my side.
25. Fungi that have discovered agriculture,
On trees and many a stone structure,
I may not be very bold,
But of every living thing I’m really quite old,
Not a mushroom but eaten in Arctic culture.