Day 27 Follow the trail around Weston Big Wood

For a fantastic Bank holiday Monday walk visit our nature reserve at Weston Big Wood which has a waymarked trail leading you around the reserve.Check out our virtual tour first and then pack some paper and crayons and take rubbings of the carved wooden posts you discover along the way. Whilst exploring the woodlands see how many things you can find on our scavenger hunt or download a woodland logbook from the Woodland Trust to keep you busy.

Use our guide to the reserve to find out what to look for at different times of the year and make sure you take time to just stand very quietly occasionally and listen to the wildlife going on around you.

Day 16 - Snail hunt

Did you know there are around 90 different species of land snail in the UK? There are hairy ones, flat ones, stripey ones and tiny ones. Download this spotter sheet and see how many different ones you can find in your garden, local park or even in your street. They like to hide in cool, damp places so you may have to look hard. If the weather is too hot and dry they can stay in their shells for months and often camouflage themselves in gaps in walls. 

Snails have four tentacles; two are eyes and two are for feeling, they only have one foot and a tongue known as a radula that is covered in tiny 'teeth' . As you probably know they love to eat plants, particularly nice soft ones like lettuce and spinach. But beware, studies have shown that snails have a homing instinct, so the next time you throw one over the garden fence to stop it eating your plants - watch out because it may just come back! 

  

The reason that there are so many is probably because they lay about 100 eggs in an underground nest and most snails are hermaphrodite (both mail and female) so nearly all can lay eggs.

Happy snail hunting!

And if you are still a fan of snails you can download this poster from the Woodland Trust.