blog navigation

Natural History Survey

blog posts

  • Soybean Aphids have lowest impact in years

    Sep 25, 2012 8:00 am

    INHS Entomologist David Voegtlin reported that this year's soybean aphid population had its lowest recorded impact, starting early but then disappearing. The low trap numbers so far this fall indicate that there may be lower numbers of eggs overwintering and a smaller flight of aphids in the spring.

  • Citizen scientist mussel survey finds 14 species

    Oct 1, 2012 8:00 am

    INHS Field Biologist Sarah Bales accompanied a group to survey mussels at Lake of the Woods. The group of citizen scientists found 314 individual mussels of 14 native and one introduced species. According to Bales, only one species that was previously found there was not found by this group, and that species is rare. She also said that the range of sizes found indicates the mussels are reproducing and that the habitat had not been degraded significantly.

  • INHS Scientists survey for Invasive Species

    Oct 3, 2012 8:00 am

    The Illinois Cooperative Agricultural Pest Survey (CAPS) program is a joint effort between several state and federal agencies to safeguard our nations food and environmental security from invasive pests that threaten our production and ecological systems. This program focuses on state surveys of harmful or economically significant exotic plant pests, diseases, and weeds that have eluded first-line of defense inspections.Illinois CAPS coordinator Kelly Estes discusses the current and upcoming surveys, including new techniques for monitoring.

  • Remnant prairies protected by railroads

    Oct 8, 2012 10:00 am

    INHS Plant Ecologist Bill Handel has been surveying railroad prairies for the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) for years. The data Handel and his colleagues at INHS gather are used by IDOT and other state agencies to protect native habitats when planning construction projects, mowing along roadways, and applying pesticides. 

  • INHS scientists continue fish monitoring begun over a century ago

    Nov 1, 2012 8:00 am

    INHS fisheries biologist Josh Sherwood was featured in a recent Environmental Almanac about the Fishes of Champaign County surveys. Sherwood is conducting the fifth iteration of the surveys that began in 1885. The original Fishes of Champaign County survey was conducted by Stephen A. Forbes between 1885 and 1901 and found 65 species of fishes. A second version of the Fishes of Champaign County was conducted by Forbes and Robert E. Richardson, and added 14 species to the list. R. Weldon Larimore and Phillip W. Smith conducted the third survey in the 1950s and added 9 more species to the list. Larimore and Peter Bayley conducted the fourth survey in 1987 and brought the species list to 94 species of fishes.

  • Public symposium to coincide with Catalogue of Life global team meeting

    Nov 2, 2012 9:00 am

  • Rare salamander sparks excitement in INHS herpetologists

    Nov 9, 2012 8:00 am

    INHS Herpetologist Chris Phillips was interviewed for a recent installment of Environmental Almanac. Phillips was contacted by a photographer who captured an image of an elusive, fully aquatic amphibian known as a siren, being eaten by a Great Blue Heron in Vermilion County. Sirens are known from southern Illinois but have never been detected by the extensive INHS herpetological surveys of Vermilion County over the past 20 years. Phillips said, "It goes to show you there are still some surprises out there for a herpetologist in the Midwest."

  • Waterfowl counts higher than average

    Nov 16, 2012 8:00 am

    INHS Waterfowl Ecologist Aaron Yetter conducts weekly aerial surveys and on Nov 13 found more waterfowl than average for this time of year. Yetter counted 305,310 ducks along the Illinois River compared to the10-year average of 234,434 birds for this same week and 356,735 ducks on the Upper Mississippi River compared to the 10-year average of 226,801 birds. "It looks like we got a big push of new mallards. We also have well above average numbers of pintails, gadwalls, lesser scaup and other species," Yetter said.

  • Danville, crow capital of the world

    Feb 1, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS Ornithologist Steve Bailey told the Chicago Tribune that Danville has "the largest winter roost of crows that we know about in the U.S. and Canada." Christmas Bird Counts found 121,500 crows, whereas a year ago, the count was 238,000. INHS Affiliate Mike Ward added that the drought caused a resurgence of West Nile virus, to which crows are particularly vulnerable. Crows rebound well, which might be bad news for the residents of Danville who have unsuccessfully tried many things including trucks with a "cannon" booming to scare the birds.

  • Rare shrimp found in Des Plaines River

    Feb 5, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS Astracologist Christopher Taylor and INHS Ichthyologist Emeritus Larry Page were interviewed about an unusual animal found during aquatic surveys in Lake County in NE Illinois. Lake County Forest Preserve staff turned up a "Palaemonetes kadiakensis," glass shrimp or Mississippi grass shrimp, whose range is typically further south. Taylor said that there are only five species of freshwater shrimp in North America and this particular species has adapted to live further north than the others. Page added that this species is usually found in cleaner streams, so this could be a good sign for the health of Des Plaines River.

  • White Nose Syndrome confirmed in Illinois

    Feb 28, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS researchers and their collaborators have confirmed the presence of White Nose Syndrome (WNS)—a disease fatal to several of our bat species—in Illinois. Read more about WNS and the work INHS researchers are doing to understand the disease on the INHS website.

  • Illinois town provides a historical foundation for today's bee research

    Mar 1, 2013 9:00 am

  • INHS scientists seek new sites for mussel relocation

    Apr 5, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS researcher Jeremy Tiemann is part of a team working to relocate endangered mussels from a bridge construction site in Pennsylvania to Illinois rivers. The first mussels (relocated in 2010) were given PIT (Passive Integrated Transponder) tags to allow monitoring and after a year and a half, approximately 80% of the relocated mussels had survived. An additional 1200 were transplanted in 2012, and now, new locations are being sought for additional transplants.

  • Research on diving ducks continues

    Apr 5, 2013 8:00 am

    Researchers at the INHS Forbes Biological Station have banded lesser scaup over the past two seasons to examine their use of restored habitats. Director Heath Hagy hopes to have funding to continue taking blood samples to look at metabolites and contaminants in the birds. “There are a lot of scaup here,” Hagy said. “We are catching 200-400 per day and we are only getting 10-20 recaptures, so there are a ton of birds out there."

  • Skunk cabbage—Illinois' earliest native flower

    Apr 8, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS Botanist John Taft and Outreach Coordinator Jen Mui were quoted in an article in the Chicago Tribune about skunk cabbage. Skunk cabbage, Illinois' earliest flowering native plant, gets its name from the foul odor produced as it generates heat. The heat and odor attract pollinators including flies, carrion beetles and honey bees. A link to a video about skunk cabbage pollination produced by the Outreach Department was also included in the article.

  • Spawning Bigmouth Buffalo found in local Champaign drainage ditch

    May 6, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS Fisheries Research Scientist Josh Sherwood was called out by WCIA to catch and identify some large fish found in a drainage ditch. The large fish were Bigmouth Buffalo (Ictiobus cyprinellus), usually found in large rivers, but spawn in tributaries. The flooding caused by the recent heavy spring rains likely allowed the adults to swim up to these ditches where they will lay their eggs before returning downstream.

  • End to live turtles in the Turtle Races

    Jun 19, 2013 8:00 am

    For the past 49 years, box turtles have been collected from the wild and brought to Danville for the annual Turtle Reunion and Races, a charity event. This has been a concern to herpetologists, including INHS Herpetologist Chris Phillips and U of I Wildlife Veterinarian Matt Allender (an INHS Affiliate), for several reasons including the possibility of spreading diseases. The two scientists have been collaborating on a long term study of the health of box turtles in Vermilion County. They have been testing for diseases including ranavirus, a contagious disease with high mortality that is also a threat to amphibians.

  • Microbes in gut help western corn rootworm survive rotation

    Jun 26, 2013 8:00 am

    University of Illinois researchers, including INHS Behavioral Entomologist Dr. Joseph Spencer, found that differences in the microbial community in the gut of western corn rootworms (WCR) can change their ability to survive crop rotation.

  • Fossil Insect Collaborative kicks off

    Jul 9, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS Entomologist Sam Heads is part of a collaborative effort to digitize fossil insect collections across the country. The Fossil Insect Collaborative is a joint venture between the Virginia Museum of Natural History (VMNH), the American Museum of Natural History, the Yale Peabody Museum, the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard, the University of Colorado, the University of Illinois, and the University of Kansas. The project officially kicked off the 1st of July, 2013.

  • Osprey being brought back to Illinois

    Jul 12, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS Ornithologist Tara Beveroth is assisting the Illinois Department of Natural Resources as they work to restore osprey populations in Illinois. Five nestling osprey were brought from Langley Airforce Base in Virginia to the Illinois Raptor Center in Decatur, where they were given health assessments, fed, measured, and banded. This it the first of a series of osprey translocations over the next ten years.

  • Positive tests for West Nile

    Jul 12, 2013 8:00 am

    Mosquito samples from Morton Grove tested positive for West Nile Virus at the INHS Medical Entomology Lab.

  • Drought takes a toll on monarchs

    Aug 16, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS Entomologist Michael Jeffords was interviewed about the current state of monarch butterflies in Illinois. "Last year’s drought had a twofold effect. Fewer monarchs were produced in the Midwest, and those that were had a tough time migrating to Mexico as they had a thousand miles of virtually nectarless landscape to cross in Texas and northern Mexico," Jeffords said. For additional information on Monarchs, check out this INHS species spotlight.

  • More positive results for West Nile Virus in mosquitoes

    Aug 19, 2013 8:00 am

    Glencoe, Northbrook, Wilmette, Kenilworth have all had mosquitoes test positive for West Nile Virus in August. These results—obtained by the INHS Medical Entomology Lab—were reported by the Winnetka-Glencoe Patch, the Northbrook Star, and the Wilmette-Kenilworth Patch. For tips and information about protecting yourself and the community from West Nile Virus, visit the North Shore Mosquito Abatement District website.

  • First fossil of differential grasshopper described

    Aug 26, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS Paleo-entomologist Sam Heads and collaborator Yinan Wang recently described the first fossil record of the differential grasshopper. The specimen, a species which is still alive today, was found in material from the Late Pleistocene McKittrick tar pits of southern California.

  • More endangered mussels being released in Illinois

    Aug 26, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS researchers Jeremy Tiemann, Kevin Cummings, Sarah Bales, Alison Price, and Diane Shasteen are working to reintroduce endangered northern riffleshell and clubshell mussels to sites in Vermilion County. Approximately 1000 mussels were collected from the Alleghany River in Pennsylvania, under a bridge slated for replacement in 2018. Following quarantine and tagging, the mussels will be released at sites found to meet the requirements necessary for survival.

  • 1000 more endangered mussels released in Illinois rivers

    Sep 4, 2013 8:00 am

    Over the course of a week, 1000 endangered mussels were collected from under a bridge construction site in Pennsylvania, packed for safe transport, quarantined, marked, measured, and released into new sites in Vermilion County, Illinois. This is the third relocation from Pennsylvania to Illinois as part of the Species Survival Plan for two endangered mussels, the northern riffleshell and the clubshell. Read the entire story from the U of I News Bureau, INHS, and the News Gazette.

  • Western corn rootworm developing resistance to rotation

    Sep 4, 2013 8:30 am

    INHS Behavioral Entomologist Joe Spencer is looking at rotation-resistant western corn rootworms, which are causing severe injury to crops. Crops modified to resist infestation by insects and crop rotation are some of the methods to control injurious insects, but some rootworms have developed resistance to these mechanisms. Repeated use of the modified corn year after year has given the rootworms time to adapt. Producers are encouraged to watch their fields for injury. This story was reported in InvestorPlace and the Bulletin.

  • Researchers move endangered mussels to save them

    Sep 10, 2013 9:00 am

  • 2014 Illinois First Detector Workshops for invasive species announced

    Oct 1, 2013 8:00 am

    The schedule is up for the First Detector workshops for 2014. This program, a cooperative effort between University of Illinois Plant Clinic, University of Illinois Extension, and the Illinois Cooperative Agricultural Pest Survey Program (Illinois Natural History Survey, Prairie Research Institute), is a great way to learn about new pests, diseases, and plants heading into Illinois. Last year, the trainings focused on forested ecosystems; this year the focus is on Landscape and Nursery pests.

  • Researchers need your brown marmorated stink bugs

    Oct 1, 2013 12:00 pm

    Fall is the time for many insects to start making their ways indoors for the winter. The brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB), Halyomorpha halys is believed to have been introduced from Asia and can be a pest on tress and crops. Researchers are still trying to determine the range of the BMSB and need your help. If you believe you have BMSB, we would be very interested in looking at it.

  • INHS researchers discover 4 new species in Illinois caves

    Oct 1, 2013 2:00 pm

    Scientists from the Illinois Natural History Survey at the Prairie Research Institute at University of Illinois have discovered four new species of springtails—minute ancient relatives of the insects—in the caves of the Salem Plateau in southern Illinois.

  • Japanese Stilt Grass alert

    Oct 16, 2013 8:00 am

    Japanese stiltgrass (Microstegium vimineum) was recently discovered in DuPage County in Northeast Illinois.

  • Banned chemicals persist in river otters

    Oct 16, 2013 9:00 am

    INHS researchers Samantha Carpenter and Nohra Mateus-Pinilla recently published a paper in the journal Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety. Carpenter, Mateus-Pinilla, and University of Illinois Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory researchers, analyzed liver tissue samples from 23 river otters looking at 20 organohalogenated compounds used in agriculture and industry. Read stories from the Red Orbit and News Room America.

  • Culling maintains low prevalence of Chronic Wasting Disease in deer populations

    Oct 21, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS Wildlife Epidemiologist Nohra Mateus-Pinilla and postdoctoral researchers Mary Beth Manjerovic and Michelle Green conducted research on the effectiveness of culling deer to prevent the spread of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD). CWD is a 100% fatal disease in deer, likened to Mad Cow Disease. Their paper compared the culling strategy used in Illinois to the two different management strategies used in Wisconsin over a decade. Listen to the interview on Focus 580.

  • Fungus that causes white nose syndrome is a survivor

    Oct 24, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS Mycologist Andrew Miller and graduate student Daniel Raudabaugh recently published a paper on the fungus Pseudogymnoascus (Geomyces) destructans, which causes white nose syndrome in bats. In this first, in depth study of the basic biology of the fungus, the researchers found that P. destructans can survive on a wide variety of nutrient sources. White Nose Syndrome research at the Illinois Natural History Survey.

  • Bullfrogs insensitive to road salt

    Nov 6, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS post doctoral researcher Tanya Hawley Matlaga, INHS Herpetologist Chris Phillips, and INHS Ecotoxicologist David Soucek report that bullfrogs are less sensitive to elevated chloride concentrations than some other amphibian species. The study was designed to mimic the level of salt found in roadside ponds following de-icing events. The study found that bullfrog tadpoles did not experience reduced survival, growth, or ability to evade predation in elevated chloride concentrations, and thus, their populations are not expected to be impacted by road salt. While this is good news for bullfrogs, it's an additional stress for other species inhabiting ponds with these voracious predators.

  • A new species of Drypetes described

    Nov 26, 2013 8:00 am

    In a recent paper in Phytokeys, INHS Botanist Dr. Geoffrey Levin described a new species of Drypetes from Costa Rica. This new species of flowering tree produces asymmetrical drupes (fleshy fruits), leading to its name Drypetes asymmetricarpa.

  • Junior high students add to our knowledge of biodiversity in Illinois

    Nov 26, 2013 12:00 pm

    Junior High students are once again adding to our knowledge of biodiversity in Illinois. Prairie Central Junior High Science teacher Scott Saffer and his seventh grade students conduct herpetological field surveys each year in Livingston County. After catching and identifying reptiles and amphibians, the students have their finds confirmed by INHS Herpetologists Andrew Kuhns and Chris Phillips. This year the students found three more species not previously documented in Livingston County.

  • Native birds as biological controllers of Emerald Ash Borer Beetles?

    Dec 20, 2013 8:00 am

    INHS Ornithologist Chris Whelan is a co-author on a recent publication reporting that woodpeckers may be helpful in controlling Emerald Ash Borer Beetles. Their study found that bark foraging birds, such as woodpeckers, foraged more heavily on ash trees and preferred ash trees with visible canopy decline over healthy trees. "Predation by bark-foragers significantly reduced tree-level EAB densities by upwards of 85%." The authors conclude that enhancing habitat for woodpeckers and other bark foragers may help control infestations and create more resilient forests.

  • Historic numbers of waterfowl in the Illinois River Valley

    Jan 6, 2014 8:00 am

    INHS researchers at the Forbes Biological Station recorded the historic numbers of waterfowl this year in the Illinois River Valley. At migration’s peak, 329,590 mallards were counted, the highest number since 1999. Northern pintails (141,840), green-winged teal (179,620), gadwall (146,300) and northern shovelers (49,060) were present in the highest numbers since the survey began. Learn more about the waterfowl aerial inventories. Follow the Forbes Biological Station on Facebook.

  • Lice evolve faster than their primate hosts

    Jan 8, 2014 8:00 am

    INHS Psocodea expert Kevin Johnson and post doctoral researcher Julie Allen led a recently published study comparing the rate of evolution in primates with that in their louse parasites. This study is the first to look at the pace of molecular change across the genomes of different groups. Read LA Times article.

  • Of lice and men (and chimps): Study tracks pace of molecular evolution

    Jan 8, 2014 2:30 pm

  • Freshwater mussel behavior altered by exposure to antidepressants

    Jan 10, 2014 8:00 am

    INHS Post-doctoral researcher Andrea Fritts is a co-author on a recently published study examining the effects of the antidepressant fluoxetine on the behavior of freshwater mussels, which could impact their survival and role in their ecosystem. The study found that chronic exposure led to "increases in movement, decreased time to movement, and increased likelihood of diurnal movement, and increased rates of lure display in mussels. Changes in mussel movement [in the wild] are likely to increase susceptibility to predation, and may also alter sediment nutrient cycling and oxygenation through changes in bioturbation provided by mussels."

  • Fig wasps older than known fig trees

    Jan 17, 2014 8:00 am

    INHS Paleontologist Sam Heads found an ancient fig wasp that pre-dates any known fig trees. According to Heads, “This is a tiny parasitic wasp, it's the smallest fossil wasp found in this particular deposit and it's the oldest representative of its family. More importantly, it’s possible that this wasp was fig-associated, which is interesting because it’s Early Cretaceous, about 115 to 120 million years old. That's a good 65 million years or so prior to the first occurrence of figs in the fossil record.”

  • Land purchase to benefit subterranean ecosystem and endangered species

    Jan 28, 2014 8:00 am

    On 25 January 2014, INHS Biologist Steve Taylor gave a presentation at a ceremony announcing the purchase of 535 acres of land over Illinois' largest and most biologically diverse cave. Fogelpole Cave is home to several protected species including the endangered Illinois Cave Amphipod and Indiana Bat. Taylor serves as science advisor for the project, which is being managed by Clifftop, a non-profit organization.

  • Arsenic, mercury and selenium in Asian carp not a health concern to most

    Jan 28, 2014 8:00 am

    A recent study by INHS researchers Jeffrey M. Levengood, David J. Soucek, Gregory G. Sass, Amy Dickinson, and John M. Epifanio showed that overall, concentrations of arsenic, selenium, and mercury in bighead and silver carp from the lower Illinois River do not appear to be a health concern for a majority of human consumers. The full results of the study have been published in the journal Chemosphere.

  • Master Naturalists help identify insects for collection

    Jan 29, 2014 8:00 am

    Members of the Illinois Grand Prairie Master Naturalists came to the Illinois Natural History Survey to help identify some of the 2,300 insect specimens that were collected by an "amateur" entomologist and donated to INHS. The volunteers were assisted by INHS Entomologists Joe Spencer, Sam Heads, Michael Jeffords and Susan Post. Portions of the collection will stay at INHS and others will be used for educational purposes through the Master Naturalist Program and Sugar Grove Nature Center.

  • Illinois otters have highest dieldrin levels

    Feb 7, 2014 8:00 am

    INHS Researcher Samantha Carpenter was featured in an article in Michigan State University's Great Lakes Echo, about the high levels of dieldrin and other contaminants in the bodies of river otters. Carpenter was lead author on a study published in October in the journal Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety.

  • INHS researchers described more than 100 new species in 2013

    Feb 21, 2014 8:00 am

    Last year, INHS researchers described over 100 species new to science. The Prairie Research Institute Library wrote a nice summary of the papers published by INHS scientists in 2013. Prairie Research Institute Library Blog

  • Corn rootworm management webinar

    Feb 25, 2014 8:00 am

    INHS Behavioral Entomologist Joe Spencer presented a talk on "Rootworm Biology and Behavior" in the webinar "Corn rootworm Management in the Transgenic Era." Over 300 people attended this webinar, archived at the link below.