words and photos by Melissa McMasters, Conservancy Director of Communications I’ve been thinking a lot lately about emergence. When we’re all able to come outside of our homes again, how will we have changed? It seems certain that our concept of safety and security will
words and photos by Fields Falcone, Overton Park Conservancy Visitor Services Coordinator When you enter the Old Forest, what senses are first engaged? Where in space do you focus? Admittedly and immediately I fall into a lifelong visceral habit of focusing upward with my ears
If there’s one question I’m asked most often as a birder, it’s “What’s that bird that sings [distinct whistling song]?” The answer–the singer of the melody often translated as “Oh, sweet Canada Canada“–is the white-throated sparrow. (Listen to it here. To my ears, the second song listed is the
April greetings, park friends! We know that many of you won’t be visiting the park as much as you’d like this spring, so we’ll continue to bring it to you. Some quick notes before we get to the #NatureZen: If you do walk or bike into
Words and photos by Melissa McMasters, Director of Communications As winter turns to spring, we’ll soon see an influx of migratory birds. But for now, let’s spotlight some of the stars of the winter forest: the woodpeckers!Seven species of woodpeckers are regulars in the Old
Words + Photos by Melissa McMasters, Director of Communications Something I try to practice every year at this time is looking more closely. In a few weeks, when spring bird migration is in full swing, I’ll be distracted by explosive song and flashes of yellow
A huge part of Overton Park Conservancy’s mission is connecting the people of Memphis, so it’s hard to accept that one of the kindest things we can do for each other–particularly for the most vulnerable among us–is to keep some distance. The last thing we
Now that Bucks for Birds is over, I wanted to share my favorite photo of each species that I captured over the past few weeks. In many cases, my favorite photo was not the one I initially posted (thanks for coming through, summer tanager!). I’ve
It’s time for the final set of birds in our April Bucks for Birds promotion, and we saved our most fascinating visitors for last. Over the past couple of weeks, I spotted nine different warblers, which brings our final tally to 54 species photographed in
We’ve officially reached the end of April’s Bucks for Birds campaign! Spring migration continues, so I’ll be doing a wrap-up with some of my favorite photos in a few weeks, most of which are quite different than the ones I’ve posted so far. (The wood
