SATURDAY SCHEDULE
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WILDLIFE WONDERS TENT
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Batman, Bananas and Bugs
Around the World with Bob the Biologist
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The Wonder of Hummingbirds
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MS Wildlife: Survival of the Fittest
SPECIAL PROGRAMS TENT
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What You Can Do For Pollinators:
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Let It Be An Oak
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The Pollination of Native Plants
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A Chickadee's Guide to Gardening
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Interactive Tour of Bird Sounds
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KIDS NATURE ACTIVITIES TENT
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Animals Important for Humanity
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MS Wildlife: Survival of the Fittest
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MS Wildlife, See Them Live!
Guided Nature & Bird Walks
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THROUGHOUT THE DAY
Hummingbird Banding from 9-5
Wagon Rides from 10-4
Vendors & Artisans from 9-5
Water on Wheels from 10-4
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Heather Holm
Author of Pollinators of Native Plants, Heather Holm owns a
Minnesota-based landscape design and consulting firm
specializing in pollinator landscapes and native landscape
restorations. She is currently working the University of
Minnesota Extension faculty on a three year study to determine
the types of native bees that visit cultivated blueberries in
Minnesota and Wisconsin. The study also includes developing
customized forage plantings for the native bees identified, and
providing additional or enhancing existing nesting sites within
the farms. Heather is an environmental educator and frequent
presenter. She writes for Houzz, a social media website, about
pollinators, beneficial insects and native plants.
Featured Programs:
What You Can Do For Pollinators: Creating a Pollinator-Friendly
Garden Habitat - Learn about the types of native bees that visit
our gardens and how we can foster all parts of their life cycles,
including providing native flowering plants and nesting habitat.
The Pollination of Native Plants - This presentation is a
fascinating journey showcasing the development of different
flower types and the presentation of floral resources to
pollinators. Exploring the types of insect pollinators, their
foraging behavior, and the floral features that attract
pollinators, Heather will provide many specific examples of how
native plants are pollinated and what pollinator is most
effective and why.
Dr. James 'J.R.' Rigby
J.R. Rigby is secretary and co-founder of Delta Wind Birds, a
Mississippi-based nonprofit working to provide migratory
stopover habitat for shorebirds and promote the appreciation
and identification of Mississippi's avian diversity. A native
Mississippian, J.R. discovered birds relatively late in life but has
been making up for lost time. When he is not working at his day
job as a research hydrologist, he can most often be found (or
not) recording bird sounds for the Mississippi Museum of
Natural Science bioacoustics collection around the state.
Featured Program:
Bald Eagles Don't Really Sound Like That! - An Interactive Tour
of Bird Sounds - This interactive presentation will introduce the
audience to the variety and fun of bird sounds. Join us to learn
the basics of how birds produce sound, whether hummingbirds
sing, and how a bird can sing a duet with itself. We will explore
some of the songs some of our common birds as well as some of
the whackier sounds of the avian world - all while playing a few
games along the way.
Dr. Douglas Tallamy
Doug Tallamy is a professor in the Department of Entomology
and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, where he
has authored 84 research publications and has taught Insect
Taxonomy, Behavioral Ecology, Humans and Nature, Insect
Ecology, and other courses for 34 years. Chief among his
research goals is to better understand the many ways insects
interact with plants and how such interactions determine the
diversity of animal communities. His book Bringing Nature
Home: How Native Plants Sustain Wildlife in Our Gardens was
published by Timber Press in 2007 and was awarded the 2008
Silver Medal by the Garden Writers' Association. The Living
Landscape, co-authored with Rick Darke, was published in 2014.
Among his awards are the Garden Club of America Margaret
Douglas Medal for Conservation and the Tom Dodd, Jr. Award of
Excellence.
Featured Programs:
A Chickadee’s Guide To Gardening - In the past we have
designed our landscapes strictly for our own pleasure, with no
thought to how they might impact the natural world around us.
Using chickadees and other wildlife as guides, Tallamy will
revisit our approach to gardening to see what is required to
keep our landscapes alive. In the process he shows how sharing
our gardens with other living things will not reduce our
pleasurable garden experiences, but enhance them.
Let It Be an Oak - Once we have decided to restore the
ecological integrity of our suburban neighborhoods we need to
decide what plants to add to our properties. Oaks are superior
trees for suburban restoration projects because of their many
ecological and aesthetic attributes. Tallamy will compare oak
species to other popular shade trees in terms of their ability to
support animal diversity, protect watersheds, sequester carbon
dioxide, and restore lost plant communities.
Southeastern Avian Research (SEAR)
Southeastern Avian Research (SEAR) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit
organization that was established to promote the conservation
and preservation of hummingbirds and other neotropical
migrants through scientific study and education. Located in
Clarksville, Tennessee and under the leadership of HBSG crew
member Cynthia Routledge, SEAR’s current projects include an
ongoing winter hummingbird banding study, a hummingbird
migration banding study and participation in MAPS (Monitoring
Avian Productivity and Survivorship), a collaborative continentwide breeding bird study that has been ongoing since 1989.
Southeastern Avian Research is delighted to have been invited
to participate for a second straight year in the Hummingbird
Migration & Nature Celebration, and honored to be able to
continue the great tradition of hummingbird education and
banding established by Bob and Martha Sargent and the
Hummingbird Study Group. The SEAR team will be banding
hummingbirds at two separate tents all three days of the
festival.
Rob Mies
Rob Mies is a conservation biologist, bat expert, author, and
Director of the Organization for Bat Conservation. He has
appeared on many television shows including The Ellen
Degeneres Show, The Today Show, Live with Regis and Kelly,
Late Night with Conan O’Brien, and Martha Stewart. Rob is the
co-author of the first field guide to the bats of the United States
and Canada, “Stokes Beginners Guide to Bats.” His research
includes work with the endangered Indiana Bat of the United
States, endangered Rodrigues Fruit Bat in the Indian Ocean, and
the threatened Spectacled Flying Fox Bat in Australia.
Featured Programs:
Batman, Bananas and Bugs - Learn about the fascinating world
of bats. See live bats up-close, including an insect-eating bat
from Mississippi, nectar-feeding bat from South America, fruiteating bat from Africa and the biggest bat in the world from
Southeast Asia. Find out how to attract bats to your backyard
with plantings and bat houses.
Bob Tarter
Bob Tarter received his degree in Natural Resources and
Environmental Science from the University of Illionois, UrbanaChampaign. Bob Tarter worked for the Indiana Department of
Natural Resources for several years as a wildlife biologist and
later with Ducks Unlimited and their waterfowl research
program in North Dakota. Bob incorporated the Natural History
Educational Company of the Midsouth (NHECM) to educate
children about the natural world and reach out to others who
may never have an opportunity to view and learn about these
animals up close.
Featured Program:
Around the World with Bob the Biologist - Bob will be
showcasing some of his & the crowds favorite NHECM Live
Animal Exhibits. Our roughly hour long program will include Red
Kangaroo, Eurasian Eagle Owl, Gila Monster, Red-tailed Boa
Constrictor, Green Iguana & others. Bob will present each
animal and give a brief description on their role in the
ecosystem and current conservation status.
Shawna Adams
Joining Natural History Education Company of the Midsouth
(NHECM) in the Summer of 2015, Shawna Adams has been a
teacher for 11 years for general science, biology and chemistry
courses for grades 7-12 in West Tennessee. She has a
Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Biology, from Murray State
University and also has worked as a vet tech for almost ten
years. She is passionate about the need to educate the younger
generation about the natural world and practices this passion
already with many “classroom pets” in her Bradford Elementary
school room. She has seen first hand how children (& adults)
can learn and appreciate animals more by experiencing them up
close.
Featured Program:
Animal’s Important for Humanity - Shawna will be showcasing
our; Straw-colored Fruit Bat, Black Tailed Prairie Dogs, Silkie
Chicken, Pygmy Goat, CA King Snake, African Pygmy Hedgehog
& others. Shawna will present each animal and give a brief
descrpiation on their role in the ecosystem and how Humans
benefit from them and the concerns we have with their
conservation status.
Deb Waz
The Mississippi Museum of Natural Science has four Outreach
Educators that cover the state. Deb Waz is the educator for
north Mississippi, Jackie Henne-Kerr covers the delta/central
region, Jessica Eaves the southeast and Sabrina Cummings the
southwest. They travel their regions visiting schools, community
groups, festivals, etc. informing the public about wildlife and
endangered species in Mississippi. Each educator is a Project
WET and Project WILD facilitator, helping teachers learn how to
integrate wildlife and water education into their classroom.
Their coworkers include an American alligator, snake, and
turtles.
Featured Programs:
Mississippi Wildlife - Come learn about the wildlife species
that live in your backyard! We'll look at bones, skulls, shells,
pelts, and other specimens. Live animals might include turtles,
snakes and/or alligators!
Mississippi Wildlife: Survival of the Fittest - An animal's survival
depends on its fitness! Animals have to change their bodies and
behaviors if they want to survive in their habitats. We'll
investigate how several Mississippi animals survive in some very
different habitats. Live animals might include snakes, turtles,
and/or alligators!
Heather Gallagher
Heather Gallagher is a naturalist and hummingbird bander at
Warner Park Nature Center in Nashville. An honored Tennessee
State Environmental Educator (2011), Heather supervises the
education programming and oversees many projects, including
historic structures and cemeteries in Warner Parks. She lives in
Burns, Tennessee, outside of Nashville with her husband Kris
and 4 dogs.
Featured Program:
The Wonder of Hummingbirds - Are you as mystified by
hummingbirds as I am? Does that special buzz of their wings,
that high-pitched call, the flash of red and green in the sunlight
awaken the hummer enthusiast in you? Unlock several
hummingbird mysteries and learn a few tricks of the trade at
this up-close and personal look at our favorite migrant.
Terry Vandeventer
Terry Vandeventer is the owner of The Living Reptile Museum
Educational Productions, he regularly lectures at professional
symposia across the United States and in several foreign
countries. A popular personality on television and radio call-in
shows, Terry Vandeventer is also the author of numerous
scientific and popular publications on snakes. Formerly in
charge of the Jackson Zoo Reptile Department, he now serves as
Herpetology Field Associate with the Mississippi Museum of
Natural Science.
John Manion
John spent his youth growing up in rural upstate NY. He has
lived in many places in the U.S. and abroad and after working in
several careers (the longest as an emergency/trauma nurse) he
realized his true passion was for plants. After earning an
undergraduate degree in plant science at the State University of
New York at Cobleskill, he was awarded a fellowship to earn a
Master’s Degree in Public Garden Leadership at Cornell
University. He has interned and worked at several botanical
gardens and arboreta, including the Royal Botanical Garden in
Edinburgh, Scotland. After working as Historic Gardens Curator
at the Atlanta History Center, he assumed his present position
as Kaul Wildflower Garden Curator at Birmingham Botanical
Gardens in Alabama, where he has been for six years. Five years
ago John began a Certificate in Native Plant Studies program
that has been immensely successful.
Featured Program:
Beyond Beauty: Fascinating Stories About Our Native Plants
Many of our native plants are beautiful in appearance and are
essential food sources for many of our pollinators and their
larvae. Covering many common southeastern favorites such as
Poke Sallet, Bloodroot, Yellowroot, Resurrection Fern and Jack
in the Pulpit, this talk will focus, instead, on the intriguing
stories (both fact and folklore) that accompany some of our
native species.