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Melissa McMasters

@melissamactn.bsky.social

230 followers 130 following 250 posts

Naturalist, writer, photographer, non-profiteer, Memphian. If it flies, I probably love it (unless it's a mosquito). Words and photos mainly at https://www.overtonpark.org/naturezen

www.overtonpark.org

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Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · 2d

One of the best parts of a morning rain shower is watching the scruffy bumble bees dry off and leave their floral shelters.
#bees

A common Eastern bumble bee resting on a small white-and-yellow aster flower, its hairs all mussed from a rainstorm

Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · 11d

I wonder if I saw one here, would it give that kind of buzz...Hmm. Probably not. Poor maligned thing!

Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · 11d

Hot damn! That's amazing. So happy for you!

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Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · 12d

I need you to figure out a proprietary bait for the crested lark before I see you next, please and thank you! I still don't feel I've experienced its full majesty...

Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · 12d

Over there contributing to the delinquency of the butterflies, I see! Can't take you anywhere 😇

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Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · 16d

Oh that's great! Just added it 😊

Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · 16d

I'm in Memphis, TN!

Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · 17d

SAME

Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · 17d

What a treat to watch this leafcutter bee bring the petals of a blanketflower back to line her nest, transforming a drainage hole into its own kind of bloom.
#bees #Inverts

A bee with a black-and-white striped abdomen, with yellow pollen stuck to the underside, carries a bright red flower petal into a small hole in a concrete wall that she has already lined with many other petals.

The bee emerges from the nest, which looks like the top of a flower that has been stuck into the small drainage hole.

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Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · 19d

Late-season longhorn bees are truly the embodiment of Just a Little Guy.
#bees #Inverts

A fuzzy light brown bee with teal eyes and long reddish antennae hugs the bloom of a light purple aster

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Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · 23d

I've been doing NABA counts in West TN for the past dozen years, and those are some of my favorite weekends of the year! The butterflies are amazing on their own, but spending a day with other butterfly people is also just delightful.

Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Sep 7

I've seen a lot of leafcutter bees with their abdomens curled up as they forage, but never quite to *this* extent. #overachiever #bees #Inverts

A black bee with forages on a red and yellow blanket flower, with its abdomen turned up to where it rests on its thorax. The abdomen is fuzzy and a rusty brown.

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Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Sep 6

Now you've got me pondering an entirely new question: do butterflies hiccup?

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Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Sep 6

Not an ABA bird, but the tufted coquettes in Trinidad & Tobago are some of my favorites. They have to find their own little garden spot because the other hummingbirds bully them off the feeders. Some of the tiniest birds in the world! 🪶

A male tufted coquette, with a shock of bright orange feathers on top of its head, black facial feathers, a light orange neckerchief with black spots, and a green body perches on a branch

The female tufted coquette has a muted version of the same color scheme but with no crest. Here one is sitting on a branch with some white pollen stuck to her bill.

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Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Sep 4

This summer has taught me so much about swallowtails, which I always thought of as familiar butterflies. These past few weeks, I've been noticing Eastern tigers that are somehow both light and dark morphs. The explanation surprised me! overtonpark.org/blog/naturez...
#butterflies #Inverts

NatureZen: Smoky Sisters | Overton Park Conservancy

words and photos by Melissa McMasters

overtonpark.org

Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Aug 19

I've seen a lot of adorable baby birds this summer, and now I'm sharing them with you! Meet the next generation: overtonpark.org/blog/naturez...
#birds #babybirds

NatureZen: A Chip Off the Old Beak | Overton Park Conservancy

words and photos by Melissa McMasters

overtonpark.org

Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Aug 18

That's awesome! Best of luck to the little dinosaurs!

Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Aug 18

Thank you! They are such a fun pair. So curious if they had a successful fledgling this summer...

Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Aug 18

Thank you so much! I love sharing all the wildlife I meet!

Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Aug 17

I wrote about this hawk and his paramour over the winter. They are two extreme goofballs and I hope to see them paired up again before too long! overtonpark.org/blog/naturez... 🪶

NatureZen: Hawk Love | Overton Park Conservancy

words and photos by Melissa McMasters

overtonpark.org

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Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Aug 17

Ran into my favorite red-tailed hawk today after not seeing much of him over the summer. He would like you to know it is so hot in Memphis and you should never come here in August. 🪶

An adult red-tailed hawk sits facing left on a tree branch, its tongue hanging out

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Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Aug 14

On to the next one... This pipevine swallowtail didn't even bother to tuck its tongue back in when bouncing from one ironweed bloom to another.
#butterflies #Inverts

A swallowtail butterfly with black wings spotted with orange, white, and blue, takes off from atop a stalk of ironweed flowers

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Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Aug 11

Question for #bees folk: I've observed this new-to-me bee for the last few days. I suspect it's Epimelissodes compta, which I read specializes on evening-primrose. We have some of that in this garden, but so far I've only seen it nectar-rob Mexican petunia. Am I on the wrong track? (Memphis, TN)

A large, fuzzy bee with a reddish-orange thorax, black-and-white striped abdomen, blue eyes, a white face, and long black antennae sticks its tongue into the stem of a Mexican petunia flower

The bee nestles into the crook of a leaf, resting against an unopened flower. The abdomen is more visible from this angle.

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Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Aug 10

This time of year I often see buckeyes at the end of their lives right alongside perfectly-fresh ones. They seem to be able to persist for a while on tattered wings. I like them both ways: as a symbol of endurance or of cheerful energy.
#Inverts #butterflies

Melissa McMasters @melissamactn.bsky.social · Aug 10

::weeps in urban jungle:: Please post infinite numbers of Alpine vistas!