words and photos by Melissa McMasters Until this month, my experience with flamingos was limited to lawn ornaments and residents of zoos and aviaries. I wasn’t sure I’d ever see an American flamingo in the wild. Though they turn up in South Florida every now
NatureZen: Dog Day Symphony words and photos by Melissa McMasters, except where noted There’s no sound that takes me back to childhood quite like a cicada song. As daylight waned on a summer evening, my grandma would finally deem it cool enough to get into her
words and photos by Melissa McMasters I love a field of sunflowers as much as the next person (although probably not as much as a bumble bee does). But for me, the bright floral stars of midsummer are not sunflowers but their much more diminutive
NatureZen: The Next Generation words and photos by Melissa McMasters At some point every spring, the soundtrack of the woods changes. There are fewer birds layering their songs over each other in pursuit of attracting a mate or warning away a rival. Filling in these
words and photos by Melissa McMasters This Saturday, the Americas will celebrate World Migratory Bird Day, a day devoted to birds and the international cooperation required to assist in their conservation. About 20% of the world’s bird species migrate, flying hundreds or thousands of miles
NatureZen: Beyond April Fool’s words and photos by Melissa McMasters April Fool’s Day, along with warmer weather, has me thinking about all the creatures I run across that are using deception as a part of their daily lives. So even though April 1 has come
words and photos by Melissa McMasters Our fellow Tennessean Margaret Renkl wrote last week in the New York Times about the disconnect between the joy she felt at this year’s early-blooming wildflowers and the fear of what this too-soon spring would mean for the overall
words and photos by Melissa McMasters As we head into Valentine’s month, it seems like every shop aisle is filled with hearts of all sizes and colors, while outside everything is a shade of brown or gray. So let’s travel via photos to a time
words and photos by Melissa McMasters It’s the holiday season, and we’ve got snacks on the brain. Holiday parties, big family meals, stockings stuffed with candy in sparkly wrappers…we’re being bombarded with seasonal treats right now. But for birds in our area, winter is hardly
We know it intuitively: when we step into the Old Forest at Overton Park, we just feel different. Even though we’re still surrounded by busy streets on all sides, we’ve walked into a place of calm, where we can take a deep breath. That feeling
