Discover Nature Notes

Eat them green and you'll pucker up like a sunfish. Gather them ripe before the raccoons, and you'll enjoy Missouri's tastiest fall treat-- perfect for pies, breads, and puddings. Persimmons are a homegrown favorite. Discover what sports use persimmon wood and get a recipe in this week's Discover Nature Note.

Without them, our produce aisles would be mostly bare. With less of them, harvest sizes will shrink and prices will soar. Bees are essential for many of the foods we eat and nutrients we need. Learn simple ways you can help bees in this week's Discover Nature Note.

They rest like a sphinx, hover like a hummingbird, flutter like a bat, and are built for speed like a plane. Sphinx moths have an identity crisis. With us, not them. Many are mistaken for other species. Discover more in this week's Discover Nature Note.

Discover ways you can help and feed backyard birds including home recipes in this week's Discover Nature Note.

Try this family activity in your own backyard for some nightly fun. Discover Moth Sugaring to attract some colorful night creatures to your backyard in this week's Discover Nature Note.

The cricket’s song can recall the carefree summer days of childhood. Discover how and why they make their song in this week's Discover Nature Note.

It was cared for by Native Americans, named by French explorers, sustained by fire, and when the steel plow broke it; it fed the world. The tallgrass prairie is America's original landscape. Learn more about this special habitat and where you can explore remaining Missouri prairies in this week's Discover Nature Note.

Blooming Sunflowers and other natural landscapes inspire dynamic photo opportunities. Learn tips to make the most of your nature photos in this week's Discover Nature Note.

Discover WHY you want this wasp around and HOW scary good Great Golden Diggers are in this week's Discover Nature Note.

COOL OFF on the water this summer. Find tips and places to go, and see where the Beatles floated on one of Missouri's most scenic riverways in this week's Discover Nature Note. Celebrate Missouri's water heritage this Bicentennial year.