Chase the Moon - Volunteer Opportunity

For those of you who are not riding in The Conservation Foundation's Chase the Moon bike ride during the early morning of August 1st, please consider providing volunteer support for riders on the Fermilab site.

A number of volunteers are needed to help direct riders around the Fermilab site.  Please contact fermilabnaturalareas@gmail.com if you are interested.

photo courtesy:  The Dream Sky, Flickr

Summer Blooms

At noon tomorrow, July 21, Ryan Campbell will lead a walk into the summer prairie. Meet at the Margaret Pearson Interpretive Trail parking lot.  There will be ample opportunities for discussion on prairies and plants and everything else as we make the short hike. Join us!

Photo credit:  Fermilab Visual Media Services,

Monarda Fistulosa, Wild Bergamot

Butterfly Walk Report

At least a dozen people turned out for the afternoon butterfly walk on July 1. Tom Peterson showed the group the Gray Comma, a Pearl Crescent, a Cabbage White, a Clouded Sulphur, a Dusky Wing Skipper, and a Banded Hairstreak. The late afternoon sun was hot and the green of the prairie glowed as the group was distracted by plants, kids catching bugs, stories and conversations, as well as butterflies.

Please join us for the upcoming butterfly walks on August 12 and August 26!

Field Trip: Indian Boundary Prairies

from our summer restoration folk:

On Friday, June 25th, five of us, Ryan Campbell, Julie Allen, Jessica Meyers, Kevin Sheehan and Mike Beck, went to visit remnant prairies in Markham, Illinois.  Referred to as the Indian Boundary Prairies or Gensberg-Markham, the lands are owned and managed by the Nature Conservancy, Northeastern Illinois University and the Natural Land Institute. Two of the stewards shared some history as well as their current management efforts. This was an excellent opportunity for us to see what a restored remnant prairie looks like, and to compare and contrast it to our prairies at Fermilab.

With their permission, we collected Wild Onion, Prairie Panic Grass, and some different carex species. We were all surprised by the extremely high level of plant diversity, which caused average plant height to be much shorter than we see at Fermilab. The most exciting point of the day was when we came across a federally endangered White Fringed Orchid (pictured above), just finishing its bloom. The manager and naturalist of the site Ron Panzer was not surprised: “We got tons of them,” he said.  In addition, the site is known for its insect diversity, such as the Aphrodite butterfly. The prairie is open to the public and well worth the visit.  More information is available online.

photo courtesy:  Julie Allen

Tonight: Summer Sunset

At sunset tonight turn your gaze west, over the prairie at Fermilab. Ryan Campbell will be hosting a walking tour of our grassland restorations for those wanting an experience once familiar to this land and now recreated. Expect to see such beautiful prairie forbs as Culver's Root, Pale Purple Coneflower, Wild Bergamot, and Rattlesnake Master. Listen to the sounds of the of birds and insects, talk with others about prairie, and smell the cool breeze on this magnificent and rare tallgrass prairie landscape.

photo courtesy:  www.illinoiswildflowers.info