Will County News

 Press release from Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie:  "WILMINGTON, Ill. (March 3, 2023) – The USDA Forest Service will be conducting prescribed burning starting next week in parts of the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie. Preparations are being made to conduct burning as weather permits. You might see smoke due to the controlled burning.  Prescribed burning on the USDA Forest Service - Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie Photo by Joseph Parr / USDA Forest Service. USDA Forest Service staff will initiate prescribed fire operations as weather patterns shift to favorable, modest temperatures and moderate humidity that is conducive to burning. Wind speed and direction, temperature, relative humidity, and measurable moisture in vegetation are taken into consideration. Burning will be conducted in wide array of areas across Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie.  Since 1996, volunteers and staff have been working with over 275 native Illinois prairie plants to restore and ...

  Migrating Monarchs make a stop at Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie!  Staff at Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie and local nature enthusiasts have observed monarch butterflies at Midewin. Here is a video of monarchs at around 7:30 a.m. earlier this week:  Large roosting of monarchs were last observed at Midewin in 2018: More info on the monarchs from staff at Midewin: "The best time to look is just after sunrise and just before sunset. Bring a long camera lens and look into the trees. Busy spots are along the Henslow Trail, (1) just south of where the Henslow Trail intersects with the Group 63 Trail; and (2) just east of Boathouse Road.   Here is information for finding the Henslow Trail and Iron Bridge:  https://www.fs.usda. gov/recarea/midewin/recarea/? recid=57100 . Here is information for finding the Henslow Trail off of Boathouse Road / River Road:  https://www.fs.usda.gov/ recarea/midewin/recarea/? recid=57104 . "

  As seasons change, so does the landscape at Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie.  The prairie restoration at the Iron Bridge is the second largest restoration at Midewin.  A variety of prairie plants bloom throughout the year, creating new landscapes each season. Early October fall colors at Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie:

Before closing for repairs in 2019, the Brandon Road bridge was a favorite shortcut over the Des Plaines River to avoid I-80 or downtown Joliet. Barge traffic did make for frequent delays while barges and boats navigated the locks at Brandon Road, but waiting traffic could take in the nature of the Des Plaines River:

The Forest Preserve District of Will County will hold a maple syrup program at Plum Creek Nature Center,  27064 Dutton Rd, Beecher, IL 60401: "CRETE TOWNSHIP  – “Maple Syrup Magic,” 1-3 p.m. Saturday, March 7, 2020.  Plum Creek Nature Center. From the earliest times, Native Americans and pioneers of the Midwest made maple syrup from the sweet sap of the sugar maple tree. Learn how it’s made, find maple trees on-site and try some real maple syrup. This program takes place inside and outdoors and will involve hiking a quarter mile. Free; all ages. Register by Friday, March 6, at ReconnectWithNature.org or call 708-946-2216." Tapping Maple Syrup.  Photo courtesy of the Forest Preserve District of Will County

Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie has shared photos of the first baby bison born at Midewin in 2019! A bison herd was reintroduced to Midewin in the fall of 2015 as part of a twenty-year study of the impact of bison grazing on prairie restoration. Photo courtesy of Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie.  Rick Short / USDA Forest Service - Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie

Prairie restoration workers and volunteers will plant over 10,000 pounds of seed at Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie in the coming months.    Restoration partners and Midewin volunteers are working to plant prairie seeds on 700 acres of new restoration land. Recently, the National Forest Foundation, the Wetlands Initiative and volunteers mixed the seeds of 175 different plant species tailored to each of Midewin’s different prairie habitats.  Beginning with the smaller quantities required, each seed species is meticulously weighed according to a “recipe” indicated for each habitat. Most of the larger quantities of seed will be mixed offsite and then broadcasted across the former soybean fields near Midewin’s Henslow Trail.  Members of The Wetlands Initiative’s Midewin field crew – Jim Conboy, Rachel Rohde, and Matt Taber mix the prairie seeds by hand in the Horticultural Building at the USDA Forest Service’s Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie, 30239 S. State...

The Forest Preserve District of Will County is planning a fun event at Plum Creek Nature Center, located at 27064 S. Dutton Road in Crete Township .  See details below from the Forest Preserve: "“Snow Day Festival” is set for noon-4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 19, at Plum Creek Nature Center in Crete Township. This year’s lineup will feature snowball fights, snowshoes, ice carving and more. New this year is an appearance by Elsa and Anna, characters from the Disney movie “Frozen." “Visitors will be able to see a short performance then meet and take photos with the characters,” said Suzy Lyttle, an interpretive naturalist at Plum Creek. “This will happen in a cozy warming tent. Plus, we will be showing the movie in the nature center with free popcorn.” Another new fest feature this year is the snowball fight arena. “Even if there is no snow, we have tons of plush snowballs at the ready,” Lyttle said. “There will be an area with hay bales perfect for ducking and hiding.” Ice bowl...

By Ann Baskerville Wilmington's South Island Park, located just off of historic Route 66, is a great place to observe bald eagles.  As temperatures drop, bald eagles fly south to find open water.  For the past three years, I have spotted bald eagles in the trees on the western bank of the Kankakee River in Wilmington.  Here is a video I took on December 22, 2018 of a bald eagle leaving the tree and flying over the river:

April 20, 2017 At least one new baby bison has joined the herd at Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie:

The first baby bison have been born at Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie!!

Will County Forest Preserve Programs, from the Forest Preserve: Forest Preserve District Offers Bird, Boat, Farm and Photo Classes PLAINFIELD –  This year’s final two sessions of “ Lake Renwick Bird Viewing ” tours will be held from  10 to 11 a.m.  on  Wednesday, Aug. 12 , and  8 a.m. to noon  on  Saturday, Aug. 15 , at the Forest Preserve District of Will County’s Lake Renwick Heron Rookery Nature Preserve, located on Renwick Road, 0.5 mile east of Route 30. On  Aug. 16  the preserve, which was closed except for the tours as the birds were nesting, will reopen for general use from  8 a.m.  to sunset through  Feb. 28 . Registration is not required for the bird viewings; the program is for ages 7 and older. NAPERVILLE  – A “ Riverview Farmstead Tour ” is scheduled for  6 to 8 p.m.  on  Thursday, Aug. 13 , at the Forest Preserve District of Will County’s Riverview Farmstead, located on Book Road, south ...

By Ann Baskerville According to the Illinois Department of Transportation's South Suburban Airport Land Acquisition webpage , Loyola University Chicago has sold 90.72 acres to the State of Illinois for the Peotone Airport.  The parcel is located at Egyptian Trail and West Eagle Lake Road and was sold for $900,000. The land was donated to Loyola by the late Mary and Anthony Rudis , well-known conservationists and airport opponents who were some of the largest landowners in the Airport Footprint.  As this 2004 Chicago Tribune article discusses, Mr. and Mrs. Rudis donated the land without restrictions on its use. Will County News contacted Loyola for comment on the decision to sell the land and received the following response from Steve Christensen, Communications Director for Loyola: "When the University was originally notified of this bequest, we considered using the land for an ecology station. Since that time, the University acquired nearly 100 acres in Woodstock, Illi...

By Ann Baskerville Prairie Volunteers and Boy Scouts spent a Saturday morning helping Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie staff take native prairie plants out of winter storage.  According to Midewin botanist Jennifer Durkin, native prairie seedlings are housed in bunkers during the winter because the seedlings are still developing a strong root system and can not handle harsh winter weather.  The same characteristics that made the Joliet Army Ammunition Plant bunkers good places to store ammunition make them ideal for storing baby plants.  The bunkers's solid concrete covered by earth creates an insulated space that allows the plants to survive even the drastically low temperatures we experienced this winter. Ammunition bunkers in Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie.  Native prairie plant seedlings are stored in a bunker through winter. Native plants stored inside a bunker at Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie Volunteers form an assembly line to...

The U.S. Forest Service will be holding an Open House on Wednesday April 3, 2013 for community members to come and learn more about the proposal to establish a bison herd on Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie.  Staff and partners from the National Forest Foundation will be available to explain more about the proposal, the environmental assessment process, and answer questions.   The Open House will be held between the hours of 3:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. at the   Midewin Welcome Center-- 30239 S. State Route Illinois 53, Wilmington, IL. The Forest Service at Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie (Midewin) is proposing to establish a small herd of bison on the Prairie and will be preparing an environmental assessment for Bison Herd Establishment in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).  In partnership with the National Forest Foundation (NFF), Midewin is proposing to develop a bison grazing area on approximately 1,200 acres. ...

By Ann Baskerville Thanks to support from the National Forest Foundation, eight graduates from North Lawndale College Prep High School are working on restoration and conservation projects at Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie this summer.   In 2011 Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie was named part of the National Forest Foundation’s  Treasured Landscapes   campaign.  The focus of the campaign is to restore forests and Americans' connection to these public lands.  The National Forest Foundation is a non-profit organization charted by Congress and focused on connecting people to their National Forests.  “As part of the National Forest Foundation’s   Treasured Landscapes   campaign, we have made it a priority to connect urban residents and youth to our spectacular National Forest System,” said National Forest Foundation’s President Bill Possiel. “Thanks to a generous donor, we were able to give a team of high school youth from the Chicago area...