We All Should Vote Yes for the Forest Preserves of Cook County

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For Cook County residents, here's an incredibly easy way to help fight climate change and support biodiversity. A slightly different version was published in the   Oak Park Wednesday Journal on October 18, 2022. At the beginning of the 20th century, a group of farsighted people had the novel idea to create the Cook County Forest Preserves system, the first of its kind in the country. It was a daunting task to plan, persuade people, and get laws through the legislature. Only then did the real work begin of purchasing and managing vast acreage, developing public programs, and conserving biodiversity while catering to humans. None of this was easy. Starting with an initial purchase of 500 acres in 1916, today the FPDCC comprises 70,000 acres of natural and recreational areas stretching from Lake-Cook Road south to Steger Road. Consequently, Cook County, home to over 5 million people, can also boast that it’s the most biodiverse county in the state.  In this time of global warming, en
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Do Your Backyard Plants and Animals Display Phenophases?

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Of course they do. This is a blatant come-on for the USA National Phenology Network. As I wrote in Something New to Do With Your Lilacs, USA NPN is looking for citizen scientists to record observations of common plants at their website. The observations will be put in a database that will track the effects of global warming on these species. How will plants and animals adapt? Will they bloom earlier? Show up in our area earlier? This will be one way we'll find out.

I was just over at the site and they've redesigned it to make it easier to use, and have added selected animals to the species you can monitor. I've added bumblebees to my lilacs, but the Illinois list includes herps, birds and even white-tailed deer (hard to miss in my neck of the woods!).

I urge anyone in the U.S. with a concern about global warming and a garden or access to an outdoor area, wild or not, to take part in this effort.

BTW, my lilacs have leafed out. How are yours doing?

Comments

Martha Upshaw said…
Wow, Adrian! Enjoying reading your blog as I contemplate planting my flowerboxes on the balcony of our 18th floor highrise. I don't actually plant until after Mother's Day, but I like to think about ways I might make changes.
March 30, 2010 at 2:59 PM
africanaussie said…
Thanks for visiting my blog Adrian, you have brought up some interesting topics, and I enjoy your quotes as well!
March 30, 2010 at 10:59 PM
Adrian Ayres Fisher said…
Martha,

Thanks for visiting. I'd love to know what you plant up there. Do you grow herbs as well as flowers?

africanaussie,

I'll visit again soon.
March 31, 2010 at 9:51 AM
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