Wild Things 2025

The bumblebee is arguably the most important native insect pollinator in the Chicago region. Co-evolving with our native flowering plants, bumblebees are exquisitely adapted both physically and behaviorally for efficient pollen and nectar collection. The annual cycle of the bumblebee colony puts the bumblebee queen in a race against time to lay enough eggs—and the workers to raise enough young—for their genes to be passed along for one more year. This session provides an overview of the bumblebee lifecycle, and the discusses the many adaptations of both bumblebees and plants that allow the fittest to succeed.

Creating native garden habitat connects us with nature and helps support birds, pollinators and wildlife. This presentation features Pam’s photos from her Chicago bird garden she created, illustrating how it’s possible to attract over 100 bird species. Tips include landscape enhancements, practices and plant selection, with an emphasis on native plants. Chicagoland’s location along the migratory route, bird species diversity, diet, nesting, supplemental support and community science will also be discussed. Doug Tallamy’s “Nature’s Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation That Starts in Your Yard” and Emily Murphy’s “Grow Now: How We Can Save Our Health, Communities, and Planet– One Garden at a Time” includes Pam’s garden, exemplifying the power of urban lots.

The grassroots movement to Save Bell Bowl Prairie expanded swiftly in large part due to the inspired minds who created visual art, street theater, music, poetry, and more, to bring awareness to the importance of saving this small remnant gravel prairie in Rockford, Illinois.

Scientific data is crucial in conserving biodiversity, and art is an essential partner in communicating the information in a way that touches hearts and catalyzes people to action. Art also serves as a means of expressing grief when conservation efforts do not succeed. As we near the 2nd anniversary of the destruction of all but 6.2 acres of Bell Bowl Prairie, join us to celebrate this beautiful place with a journey through the art it inspired.

We provide an update on three Plants of Concern projects. First, we present highlights from our first year of monitoring in northwestern Illinois, including new and rediscovered historic occurrences of state-listed plants as well as the importance of the involvement of key partners and volunteers. Second, we discuss lessons learned from our ongoing Dune Willow (Salix cordata) recovery project at Illinois Beach State Park. Lastly, we share highlights from our fourth year in southern Illinois.

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.

History and background of Somme Woods ecological restoration and summary of tasks undertaken by volunteers, staff, conservation corps and contractors, all partnering to advance biodiversity conservation of oak woodland, savanna, sedge meadow, ephemeral brooks and pools

Special emphasis in this presentation: a deep dive into the guiding principles and nitty-gritty of the indispensable summer stewardship essentials, scything and seeds work: why these constitute the Somme secret sauce to successful oak woodland biodiversity conservation

30 min. presentation followed by 20 min. Q&A and discussion

Understanding how our natural resource management affects plant-pollinator relationships is critical to assessing the effectiveness of restoration activities in conserving insect species diversity and healthy pollination of native plants. In this session, learn how the Lake County Forest Preserve District's Plant-Pollinator Monitoring Program aims to understand relationships between plants and pollinators to inform restoration strategies in the context of climate change. We will discuss the basics of plant-pollinator network ecology, how the framework was adapted to the District’s ecological monitoring program, preliminary findings, and future analysis directions that can inform restoration strategies such as seed mix design and reforestation plantings.