Travellers' Tales

Above: 'Heads of Divers Natives of the Islands of Otaheite, Huaheine & Oheiteroah' by Sydney Parkinson, c. 1769. © Natural History Museum.

This drawing is over two hundred years old. The faces probably belong to people Parkinson met on his voyages. This was the day before cameras so drawings and writing were a very good way of remembering and recording adventures and discoveries.

Can you imagine how exciting it must have been to explore new countries? Have you ever been to another country? What did you think of it? Were the people friendly? Did you like the food? Did you see any unfamiliar wildlife?

We'd love to hear about your travels. Write and tell us about them and we'll publish a selection.

« BACK Aah! New rare goats arrive at Wimpole Home Farm

This is a Bagot goat called Windmill Matthew and he's a rare breed. This means that there aren't many Bagot goats left in Britain.

	The National Trust has bought Windmill Matthew and 4 new female Bagot goats for Wimpole Home Farm. Bagot goats are quite little and as Mark Field, the Farm's Stockman says, "Good things come in small bundles." © The National Trust

Male goats are called billy goats and female goats are called nannies. The new Wimpole nanny goats' names are: Beatrice, Bethany, Briony and Becky. (But which one is which in this photo - we can't tell!) © The National Trust

Wimpole Home Farm is in Cambridgeshire. It's a working farm with rare farm breeds. The National Trust is trying to help save native breeds and Bagot goats are native to Britain.

Hopefully, there will be some Bagot goat kids in the Spring next year. We'll keep you updated as soon as we have any news - can't wait to see photos of them!

Did you go to a farm over Easter? If so, have you got any photos of animals you saw that you can send us? We'd love to hear from you.

By Rachel Hayward

Beach Artists Needed: Can YOU Make Art From Seaside Stones?

Have you ever been to the beach and made patterns from all the different coloured stones and pebbles?

If so, we have a challenge for you! The V&A Museum in London has launched a project called 'World Beach', and they want everyone to get involved.

	It's easy to take part. Just go to the beach and make a piece of art using just the stones you find there (no shells or driftwood allowed!). Then take some photos of it and send them to the V&A Museum's website, with a few words about how and where you made it. © V&A Museum

The V&A will then add your artwork to their online gallery and put a 'pin' on their world map showing where you made it.

Here at Show Me we're always up for an artistic challenge, so we headed down to Brighton beach to try and make a masterpiece.

It was a blustery day, so we chose a spot close to the pier, to shelter from the wind! © 24 Hour Museum

	We started off by sorting all the different colours of pebbles into piles. Then we decided we'd make a sculpture with the stones arranged from dark to light. © 24 Hour Museum

And here it is! Not bad eh? We're sure that Show Me surfers can do even better though! © 24 Hour Museum

It's over to you - get out there and get artistic! All the details of how to take part in the World Beach project are on the V&A's website. (You might need a grown-up to help you add your photos to the site.) You'll need to take three photos, as we have: 1. A view of the beach where you're making your artwork 2. A photo of the of the artwork while it's being made. 3. A photo of the finished article.

Once they get your entry, the V&A will add it to their online gallery and email you to let you know it's up there! Can you find ours?

	The idea for 'World Beach' came from an artist called Sue Lawty, who has been working with the V&A. You can see some of Sue's artwork on the V&A's website. © V&A Museum

Andy Goldsworthy is other artist who is famous for working with stones. He likes to work outdoors and use the natural things he finds there - stones, leaves, petals, twigs, logs, feathers, mud, sand, grass, water or ice. You can see lots of photos of his work on the Cass Sculpture Foundation website.

So, we hope you're feeling inspired, and enjoy yourself creating a masterpiece on the beach!

Kristen Bailey

« BACK Snail Survey 2009

Here at Show Me we love snails and we want you to find out as much about them as you can. Learning about snails is a great way to find out about evolution.

	Evolution is the way animals have changed and adapted over millions of years depending on what there was to eat and what the weather was like etc. Picture of a Cepea Nemoralis snail, courtesy of Mike Dodd

Did you know that snails evolved shells as camouflage to protect themselves from thrushes and other predators? Darker shelled snails are found in woodland because it's harder to spot them. Lighter shells with more stripes are found in grass. Why do you think this is? Cepea Snails, courtesy of Mike Dodd

Now there are not as many thrushes in Britain as there used to be. So scientists want to see if snails are evolving because they don't have so many predators around. For example, are darker-shelled snails sticking to their habitat of the woods or moving out to grassy areas?

Have you ever found an interesting snail shell in your garden? Did you notice if it was dark or light and stripy? Become a scientist and join the snail hunt to help the experts at MegaLab . You will search and record the types of shells you find in your own back garden. This will tell the scientists at MegaLab about the way snails are evolving. You can also have some garden fun online with Kew's Climbers and Creepers game.

By the way, have you got any slimy snail pictures you can send in? We'd love to see them!

Mark Slawinski

« BACK Animal Tracking

© US Fish and Wildlife Service.

You may think, especially if you live in a town, that your garden or the area around where you live doesn't have much in the way of wildlife. Set this simple and harmless trap and discover if anything creeps around outside once you've gone to bed.

You will need: Small bucket of sand. A little water.

Step-by-step: Spread out a layer of sand on the ground, in a place where you think there might be most wildlife. Dampen the sand a little then carefully smooth it over to make an absolutely flat, clear surface. Leave it overnight. Check in the morning for tracks.

The Morning After: What did you find? Can you identify any of the tracks? If there weren't many tracks on your trap, try again in a different place, perhaps next to a hedge or a tree. See if you can identify any of the tracks, using wildlife books or the Internet. Perhaps you could set the trap each night for a week and write a 'visitors book' of your findings, recording the different tracks.

Nature online - explore the natural world

Nature news

Give a wasp a name

Ever fancied naming a new species? Well, now is your chance. The Natural History Museum and The Times newspaper have launched a competition to name a new species of wasp to mark the opening of the Museum's new Darwin Centre. The wasp is 6cm long and it comes from Ecuador.

Find out more

Nature videos

Watch some of our scientists at work in the Museum and out in the field. The latest video looks at the significance of Ida, Darwinius masillae, the 47-million-year-old fossil primate found at Messel Pit in Germany. It is the most complete primate fossil ever found. Image © Franzen et al

Find out more

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  The science of natural history

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  Collections at the Museum

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  What will happen to us as biodiversity decreases? Find out how the Museum's work is helping in the study and conservation of biodiversity.

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  Investigate the Museum’s work researching climate change, global extinction and our ever-expanding population.

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  Nature Live online

  Find out which are the world's most dangerous fish, which beans make the best chocolate, and much more in the video archive.