R.W. Norton Gardens
Spend some time exploring an area within our gardens. Look for the characteristics of a habitat that meet would meet the needs of any given organism. Based on what you find, you will decide to stay and call this area “home” or continue to look for a new place to call home.
Create a new spotting by making observations and taking photos of an individual plant or animal within your chosen area. For vegetation, look for markers giving the common and scientific name. Fill that information into the correct slot if known or available. In the Description, add information about the size, position, and color of your observed organism. In Habitat, give as much information about your surroundings within 10 square feet of your chosen location. If you're observing an animal, notice places for your organism to find food, water, and shelter. Include this information under the notes section.
Consider the following questions:
Would you stay and set up home for you and your family in your observed habitat?
Can you explain why or why not?
Created by
R. W. Norton Art Gallery
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51 participants
9 spottings
Our 40 acres of gardens are covered with a canopy of hardwoods and pines. There are several small streams that tumble over rocks and waterfalls as they make their way toward a large ornamental pond at the center of our gardens. Our hillsides are studded with flowering shrubs, including sweet spire, dwarf abelia, and loropetalum, and lovely trees including birch, corkscrew willows, crimson queen maples, bloodgood maples, dogwoods and redbuds. The gently rolling terrain also includes a variety of other flowers, including the native iris, ginger lily, coneflower, canna lily, and black-eyed susan.
Come observe a range of micro-ecosystems from desert plants to aquatic ponds. Each area is unique to specific organisms that would thrive in that environment. Your job is to explore and inquire about what you find on the 40 acres of gardens. Record your observations using your camera and the Project Noah App. Once you complete your field observations, venture into the museum and notice what people did before the invention of the photography. Compare your observations to those of John James Audubon's "Birds of America" or the wealth of habitats depicted by various artists within landscapes.
