The Forest Service and Shawnee RC&D have cooperatively established a pollinator garden at the Hidden Springs Forest Service Administrative site in Vienna, IL. This project is part of a cost-share agreement also involving Shawnee Audubon Society, Shawnee Group of the Sierra Club, Southern Illinois Audubon Society, Southern Illinois University Restoration Club, Vienna High School, and Anna-Jo Garden Club.
The goal is to establish native plats in the landscape design and create pollinator gardens for environmental education purposes on approximately five acres. The project will also plant native tree species at three picnic sites and one campground in the Shawnee National Forest. All native species will be identified by the common name and species along with interpretive signs.
Native plant species have been purchased or transplanted from plant rescues. A plant rescue involves digging up plants from sites in the Shawnee National Forest that are going to be developed and relocating the plants to the pollinator gardens.
Mulch made from local hardwood tree species is being used in the pollinator garden to perpetuate the native ecosystem.
The landscaping design and pollinator gardens at the administrative site will become environmental education areas for partners, educators, tours, organizations, and the general public to explain the benefits of native plant species and their influence on the insects, birds, mammals, and general aesthetic and intrinsic values. In addition, the trees will provide shade for visitors while blending into the surrounding environment. The trees will be attractive to visitors, pollinators, and other animals.
The above objectives are consistent with Forest Plan’s direction for enhancing the native populations of wildlife and plants.
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) cooperated with the Shawnee RC & D, Shawnee Forest Service and the Golconda Job Corps to purchase and place fish habitat in 10 Forest Service lakes and 5 Forest Service ponds. The Department of Natural Resources provided equipment and personnel to place the habitat in the lakes and ponds mentioned above. Personnel also assisted tracking our grant match. Shawnee RC & D managed the grant funds.
A total of 1800 PVC porcupine fish attractors were purchased and placed as fish habitat. Habitat structures were placed in lakes according to size, estimated angler use and habitat need. Cedar and Kinkaid lakes received the most with 565 at Cedar and 450 at Kinkaid. The remaining porcupines were distributed as follows: Dutchman lake – 95, Little Cache – 25, Lake Glendale – 125, One Horse Gap lake – 90, Tecumseh lake – 50, Pounds Hollow lake – 150, Sugar Creek lake – 100, Bay Creek lake – 125, and 5 each in 5 Centennial ponds.
In addition to the PVC porcupine habitat structures, Cedar trees were placed as natural habitat. Approximately 1000 Cedar trees were taken from unwanted areas on the Shawnee Forest in Pope County and transported to area lakes. Due to transportation issues, Kinkaid and Cedar Lakes did not receive Cedar tree natural habitat. The remaining lakes received approximately 125 trees each.
All of the habitat placed has been recorded with GPS locations and is available from the Shawnee Forest Service and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Maps and GPS coordinates are also available on the Shawnee RC & D web site. This project provided much needed habitat and will provide additional angling opportunities for years to come.
The Fire Resources Prescribed Burn grant in partnership with the forest service. Areas covered during the 2012 burn season included:
- Boss Island is a unit in the Cache River State Natural Area and Cache River-Cypress Creek COA,
- Collier Glade Nature Preserve is a limestone glade system in the Eastern Shawnee COA
- Prairie Ridge State Natural Area (PRSNA) is the core unit in the Prairie Ridge Landscape COA
- Pyramid SP is the core unit in the Pyramid Arkland COA
- P&E Refuge L&WR is high quality barrens in the Eastern Shawnee COA
- Wildcat Hollow and Hanging rock NA’s are also satellites of Prairie Ridge
Burn assistants, overseen by certified burn bosses, play a valuable role in the completion of the prescribed burns. Assistants are required to have complete online training and participate in an in-person field test, prior to beginning work.
If you are interested in becoming a prescribed burn assistant, you can complete the online training here. After you complete the training, contact us to schedule a field training. We look forward to welcoming you to the program.
As partners in The River to River Cooperative Weed Management Area (CWMA), an organization comprised of 12 federal , state, and local agencies, Shawnee RC&D helps to fund projects for addressing the threat of invasive plants in Southern Illinois.
Through the CWMA, we are able to promote Education & Public Awareness, Early Detection of invasion and Rapid Response, Prevention, Control & Management, and Ongoing Research.
Specific projects include the Southern Illinois Invasive Species Strike Team, Stiltgrass Summit, the Southern Illinois Weed Watch, Aquatic Invasive Plant Boat Ramp Survey, and the Southern Illinois Database of Exotic Plant Occurrences.
Most of the information found and documented by the CWMA is made available online and in print, allowing local residents immediate access to the information and research being conducted by staff. Additionally, several speaking engagements go on throughout the year to explain the threat of invasive species in the area, and to help individuals learn to identify invasive plants.
The Cache River Basin is located at the junction of four physiographic provinces, an environmental rarity which makes for a unique environment for both animals and plants. The watershed’s terrain consists of hills and valleys dotted in several areas with sinkholes and intermittent streams which drain into the Cache River. The river basin varies from strikingly beautiful bluffs in the north to primordial swamps in the south.
The largest cypress trees in the Cache are over 1,000 years old, reaching heights of 95 feet with a trunk diameter up to 31 feet. These giants surround themselves with cypress knees, where swamp rose takes hold and the bird-voiced tree frog sings. This is a magical haven for rare and endangered plant and animal species tucked unexpectedly at the southern tip of a state known for its millions of acres of flat corn and soybean fields!
As part of a greater partnership of state and local organizations concerned with the Cache River, Shawnee RC&D secured funding for important and influential research to be conducted at the Cache River. Current research projects include an assessment of the Cache River fishery and a study—by a team of SIUC researchers—on river water flow and how it affects the web of life in the lower Cache River. When these research projects are combined, they will help land managers to better design projects to support the many varied species that depend on the Cache ,and its connected wetland, for long-term sustainability.
The Shawnee RC&D Area, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization serving the southern 16 counties of Illinois. Our mission is to provide local leadership and the framework required to develop and carry out a plan of action for the conservation, development, and wise use of the resources within the RC&D area. Since our founding, our focus has been conservation and economic development related to the natural resource base – the landscape that serves as the basis and backdrop for quality living in Southern Illinois.