More than 1,000 new acres of Lake County Forest Preserves land is set to be dedicated to the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission because of their uniqueness and high quality plant and animal communities after forest preserves commissioners approved the measure Tuesday.
The three locations are Grant Woods Forest Preserve between Lake Villa and Fox Lake, Lakewood Forest Preserve near Wauconda and Ethel Woods Forest Preserve near Antioch.
“The nature preserves are a way of saving our most pristine and sensitive environmental areas,” forest preserves board President Angelo Kyle said. “We have a significant number of endangered species in our preserves. This will protect our very high quality portions of the forest preserve. We’re very proud to continue to maintain the quality of the nature preserves.”
The Illinois Nature Preserves Commission, which is under the umbrella of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, is dedicated to assisting private and public landowners in protecting high quality natural areas and habitats of endangered and threatened species through voluntary dedications into the Illinois Nature Preserves System, according to a mission statement on its website.
In addition, the commission provides leadership through stewardship, management and protection.
Nearly 40 parcels in Lake County are already listed as Illinois Nature Preserves, including such high-profile sites as the Almond Marsh in Grayslake, Illinois Beach State Park in Zion, Middlefork Savanna in Lake Forest and Volo Bog.
While the forest preserve district retains ownership when its holdings are named to the list, it dedicates rights to the commission, which in turn then has some control over the property. The district submits a nature preserve management plan and master plan for any improvements and boundaries. Anything not approved in master plan, like trails or interpretive signs, is prohibited or would need to be approved by the commission.
According to the commission’s website, the designation of “nature preserve” means the land must stay in its natural state or condition and open for research, education and to provide habitat for plant and animal species and communities.
The resolutions will dedicate 3.3 acres of high quality habitat at Grant Woods adjacent to what is known as Gavin Bog and Prairie Nature Preserve, and also designate another 279.2 acres to a designated buffer area.
The buffer designation is because the land protects the preserve, and the commission believes the buffer area could eventually become a nature preserve in the future, according to its website.
The Grant Woods is a 1,226-acre preserve that boasts 12 state endangered and seven state threatened plants and is part of what the district calls the Chain O’ Lakes Strategic Habitat Conservation Area, which includes a rare bog and high quality prairie communities.
According to the resolution to dedicate the property, the dedication would completely protect the bog community with the addition of 3 acres next to Gavin Bog, which would also be surrounded by buffer.
One area is already designated as a protected Illinois Nature Preserve because it was never farmed and is rich in rare native plants. It even supports a tamarack bog, a rarity in this region.
“Bluebirds fill the nest boxes dotting the property, springtime ponds fill to the brim with noisy frogs, summer prairie grasses tower over visitors, and year-round glimpses of deer, hawks and other wildlife abound,” according to the district’s description of Grant Woods.
Ethel Woods Forest Preserve still isn’t open to the public as the district works at removing a dam to slowly drain 53-acre Rasmussen Lake and restore the North Mill Creek stream channel, but access is planned for summer of this year.
The 501-acre preserve is named in honor of Ethel Untermyer, the woman whose grassroots efforts helped create the Lake County Forest Preserve District in 1958. Along the eastern edge of this preserve are 170 acres of century-old bur oak, white oak, shagbark hickory and black walnut trees.
The 336.1-acre tract that will be dedicated as a nature preserve is part of the largest intact forest in northern Lake County, according to the district resolution. State and federal grants have helped pay for some restoration of the forest, wetland, savanna and prairie communities.
The forest provides critical nesting areas for several birds, including the creeper, thrush and state threatened black-billed cuckoo. Eagles have nested nearby, and there are a number of unique plants in the area, according to the resolution.
At Lakewood Forest Preserve, the resolution approving the dedication of 354 acres at Broberg Marsh and the 355.4 acres of Schreiber Lake Bog as Illinois Nature Preserves brings the total to 1,079 acres of new preserve for the commission.
Lakewood is the largest of the forest preserve district’s holdings at 2,835 acres. It offers dedicated equestrian trails and additional trails for hiking, cross-country skiing and snowmobiling.
Biking at Lakewood is only allowed along sections of the Millennium Trail and the Fort Hill Trail as they run north through the preserve. Tunnels for both of these regional trails allow for continuous travel and easy passage under both Route 176 and Fairfield Road. Lakewood also includes a dog park, picnic shelters, a variety of fishing ponds, and a lighted winter sports area.
The Broberg Marsh is in the northwest portion of Lakewood and includes a 90-acre wetland where six state endangered bird species and one state threatened bird species breed.
Schreiber Lake Bog is in the southeast portion of the preserve and has state endangered and threatened bog plant species, according to the resolution.
Lakewood is home to 24 threatened and endangered species. On the west side of the preserve is the 70-acre Wauconda Bog. It is ringed by poison sumac and a natural moat, and is so ecologically valuable it is designated as a National Natural Landmark and an Illinois Nature Preserve, according to the district’s website.
“We are proud to have these quality environmental holdings,” Kyle said.
