Wild Things 2025

Avoesis—a form of quietness that is not precisely silence—is characterized by an absence of noise or βοή (boe) in Greek, a word that might also translate as clamor or din. In the auditory lull from noise, the benevolent presence of other species can be discovered. Even in the exceptionally noisy environments of cities, such moments of tranquility are possible.

In this presentation, I summarize my work over the past several years on the possibility of discovering pleasing soundscapes even when rebarbative noise dominates. What might ‘avoetic spaces’—places where nature can hold sway and people can hear themselves think—be like in cities? What are the benefits of designating these spaces for both human well-being and the flourishing of non-human communities?

In June 2024, southern Illinois leaders from twenty-nine organizations participated in the Volunteer Stewardship Network’s (VSN) annual gathering to discuss regional challenges and best practices regarding volunteer recruitment and retention, non-native invasive species, environmental justice, local food, and ecological restoration and stewardship. Key takeaways from the meeting, as well as data collected through a statewide survey and other regional gatherings across the state, will inform a strategic plan to shape the VSN’s priorities for the future, strengthen network support, and inspire collaboration and synergy. In the first part of this session, participants will learn about the VSN, its strategic plan, and insights gleaned from the survey and in-person meetings. In the second part of the session, audience members will be invited to share their own insights and experiences on the topics listed above.

Learn how to engage and sustain long-term relationships in Black and Brown communities by reconnecting to nature through interactive healing modalities. Experience nature-inspired meditation, sound healing, and discussion in this experiential workshop. Equitable access to nature positively impacts individuals from BIPOC communities with the ability to heal from trauma, improve interpersonal relationships, and further help to address racial injustice or inequities in natural spaces. Light of Loving Kindness specializes in creating Outdoor Rx programs, including Self Love in Nature, Camping While Black, and Self Love Bootcamp. Our programs engage individuals from Black and Brown communities in a meaningful relationship with nature through our unique blend of holistic wellness practices and education.

Trees play a significant role in the wildness of a landscape, neighborhood or community and most people can identify with them. The Natural Land Institute's (NLI) Legacy Tree program was a community outreach and engagement strategy to draw attention to the rich heritage of trees in NLI's 12 county service area (Rockford known as the Forest City). The program, which began in January 2024 has been far more successful than planned with nominations from across northern and northwestern Illinois. Monthly tree stories about nominated trees specifically draw attention to the nature engaging attributes of a tree species. Eight new state champion trees have been identified in as many months. The program will share the objectives and outcomes of this successful community engagement program.

Ever wonder why warblers flock to wealthier neighborhoods? The unequal distribution of birds and other species is not an accident. In this session, we will cover an introduction to systematic racism and various impacts it has on our urban ecology. We will share a case study of how we used the lens of birds and birding to demonstrate concrete examples of how systemic and environmental racism play out in our ecosystem, and how we activated this knowledge and applied it to our Illinois Master Naturalist efforts, namely through community science. We will close by asking session participants to share past, current or future efforts to incorporate these important concerns in our engagement events in order to learn from and inspire one another.

Photo documentation and voice recordings were used to document flower visiting insects at 12 nature preserves in west-central Illinois from 2023-2024. Bipartite network graphs were created to determine connections between groups of insects and flowers visited. While bees made up the majority of visitations (40%) other taxa including beetles, flies and even true bugs also made up a large percentage of the total visitations. By analyzing all of the pollinator groups together it may be possible to determine the importance of bee versus non-bee insects on flower reproduction and maintaining vegetative communities.

As a person born and brought up in Southern India, I had scant knowledge of its ecology or native flora when I lived there. However, having immigrated to Chicagoland twenty years ago, I have been involved as a volunteer in restoration of sites along the Northbranch of the Chicago River, especially the Somme preserves for over a decade. In the process I have come to recognize many local native species and have developed an understanding for the ecology and native floral community of prairies, savannas, woodlands and their ecotones, thanks to wonderful mentors and fellow volunteers. This has in turn made me wonder about the ecology of Southern India where I spent my formative years, its current state of degradation and whether there is any ecological restoration work that is taking place and if so how it is being conducted. Accordingly, I have been making trips to various places in Southern India the last few years to understand the local ecosystems, the native flora and the ecological restoration that is being undertaken. In this talk I am planning to present from my notes on the ecological restoration in different ecosystems in Southern India that will be of interest to restoration enthusiasts of Chicago and point out the interesting parallels and contrasts in restoration between temperate and tropical natural areas of the globe.

AI (Artificial Intelligence) is insinuating itself into our daily lives. We all use AI, whether one realizes it or not. But can it play a beneficial role in conservation? We will address this topic by examining the pros and cons, strengths and dangers of Artificial Intelligence's potential. A case study will be presented that tests the ability of AI to help save a population of an endangered fish in northern Illinois that is cutoff from the rest of the species. An open discussion will conclude the session where the audience can brainstorm ideas or voice their feelings ranging from optimistic potential to dreaded misgivings about this emotionally charged topic with which society is wrestling.

There is increasing interest in restoring native hemi-parasitic plants such as Wood Betony (Pedicularis canadensis) into our ecosystems to help balance out aggressive native warm-season grasses and forbs while increasing native plant diversity, as well as using them in native landscaping. However, some of these have been a challenge to propagate in a nursery environment, or seed into new or existing restorations. We will talk about the successes and lessons learned on the propagation of several native hemi-parasitic species, and also give you practical tips and techniques to give you confidence to grow these unique plants at home or in a nursery.

Julianne Mason, Ecological Management Supervisor for the Forest Preserve District of Will County, will recount the differing trajectories of two thistle-infested prairie restorations, where opposite thistle-management strategies were used. In conjunction with the results of a soil herbicide residual experiment, she makes the case that thistles in natural areas are a symptom of a problem – usually, a lack of enough native perennials – and why applying herbicide to kill thistles may be counterproductive. Juli has been professionally doing prairie and wetland restorations for the past 25 years, and like many of you, her previous self from >5 years ago would have been skeptical of this presentation’s contents and take-home message. However, it’s humbling and exciting at the same time to be reminded of the complexity of our natural systems, and to continue to learn and grow as restoration practitioners and natural resource managers.

The southwest section of Cook County contains higher quality remnants of both lake plain and ground moraine prairies and savannas. Constrained often by time and financial resources, stewardship management decisions may result in biodiversity rewards or additional invasive risks. We will review how ecological ideas assist in guiding past decisions and sometimes the unexpected outcomes in restoring these areas. We will examine the "success" of these decisions on publicly owned (non-FPD) prairie preserves in Bridgeview, Orland Park, Hodgkins, Oak Lawn and Chicago Ridge. Q&A will follow with stewards.

ComEd is an electric transmission and distribution company in Northern IL with approximately 127,000 acres across which Vegetation Management and Environmental Service Department make land management decisions independent of or in partnership with stakeholders. An estimated total of 15,000 acres is believed to be restorable or remnant greenspace with potential for preservation or restoration. To prevent outages, maintain safety, and be stewards of the environment, ComEd intends to maintain its Rights of Way free of incompatible woody species and seeks partnerships to restore them to provide safety, reliability, and be a good neighbor and steward. Sr. Program Manager Kelvin Limbrick will share ComEd’s process, progress, and partnerships across Northern Illinois.

In 2018, Lincoln Park Zoo (LPZ) launched the Bat Tracker program to monitor the bats of Chicago through a community science network. After seven years of bat walks by dozens of volunteers, we have recorded thousands of bat echolocation calls. West Ridge Nature Park (WRNP) has been part of the program since the beginning, and has expanded the data collection events to include members of the public, turning them into engaging public programs. In this presentation, LPZ staff will introduce the program, results to date, and next steps, while WRNP leaders will discuss their experience using Bat Tracker as part of their public outreach programming.

Grassland bird populations are declining faster than any other group of birds in North America. Grassland habitat loss resulting from agricultural development is widely accepted as the primary driver of this population decline. With so little remnant prairie left in the Tallgrass Prairie region, effective intervention will require landscape-level grassland restorations. This session will review key concepts in grassland bird behavior, ecology, and conservation before diving into new research on the relationship between grassland birds and plant biodiversity. The session will conclude with an overview of how The Nature Conservancy's approach to land conservation and restoration furthers grassland bird conservation in Illinois.

Project Coyote is a lead proponent of legislation to ban wildlife killing contests in Illinois. The House passed this legislation in the 103rd General Assembly, but time ran out in the Senate. It will be reintroduced in the 104th General Assembly, starting in the Senate. Just as it is hard to believe wildlife killing contests are conducted in Illinois in the modern day, equally disturbing were perspectives voiced about the state’s predators in legislative debate. On display was a pitiful and painful lack of thirst for and familiarity with the science. The IDNR did not contest the bill. The agency has long held that indiscriminate killing is not predator control. Decades of research show that predator populations are self-regulating. All the killing accomplishes is to disrupt self-regulation. Thus, it makes the killing a self-fulfilling prophecy. Behaviors that humans consider problematic occur when humans continually disrupt the animals’ self-regulation. The session will explore how we move beyond predator fear to a day of a better understanding of predator/carnivore ecology reflected in science-based policy.

David Parson, MS, Carnivore Conservation Biologist, USFWS retired, Mexican Gray Wolf Recovery Coordinator 1990-1999, will co-present this session.

Muirhead Spring Forest Preserve, 1121 acres of prairie and agriculture landscape, was recently converted into a mitigation bank wetland. Immediately after construction, the bird demographics changed dramatically. We will discuss the rare breeding & migratory species that have made this site the birding hotspot of Kane County.

Saw-whet owls are a secretive seasonal resident of Illinois unlike local species that are yearlong residents that make their presence known. We’ll do a brief discussion of owl species found in the state that includes basic owl life history and behavior. From there we’ll talk about what is known about saw-whet owls and what we are trying to learn about them as part of our research. We’ll finish with a talk about good conservation practices that benefit owls and the larger ecosystem.