Environmental Almanac logo

Environmental Almanac

Weekly commentaries on the environment and appreciating the natural world, by Rob Kanter from the School of Earth, Society, and Environment at the University of Illinois.

A bicentennial oak, one more than 200 years old

L. Brody Dunn

Environmental Almanac - September 29, 2016

Ancient Oaks a Living Link to Big Grove

When people think about the landscape of central Illinois prior to European settlement they tend to think “prairie,” vast expanses of flat land covered in tall grass and tall flowers. And for the most part, that image is accurate. But groves of trees intruded on the grasslands here and there, especially on the eastern edges of rivers and streams, creating natural breaks to prairie fires driven by winds from the west.

Listen
Tight shot of a hummingbird, iridescent green above and white below, perched on the edge of a red plastic feeder.

Rob Kanter

Environmental Almanac - September 16, 2016

Late summer a great time to appreciate nature close to home

Even though there’s time on the calendar before Autumn begins officially, we’ve passed some important marks on the cultural calendar. Labor Day is a memory, the new school year is in full swing, and the season of traveling to outdoor destinations is over. For me, that means it’s a great time to renew appreciation for the undramatic nature that surrounds us every day.

Listen
A gray squirrel eats an acorn in a Chinkapin oak tree

Rob Kanter

Environmental Almanac - September 08, 2016

An Ecological Look at Acorns

Acorns are everywhere in the fall, as anyone who bicycles where there are oaks can attest. While these seeds may be a minor annoyance on the road, they’re much more interesting and important from an ecological perspective.

Listen
aldo leopold, allerton park, amphibians, animal, animals, ants, asian carp, autumn, bald eagle, bats, bike to work, birding, bird migration, birds, boneyard creek, boneyard creek community day, butterflies, cafo, central illinois, champaign-urbana, champaign-urbana mass transit district, champaign county, champaign county forest preserve district, chicago, city of urbana, clean water act, climate change, clinton lake, coal ash, coal ash pollution, college of aces, colorado, conservation, dakota access pipeline, ecology, economy, entomology, environment, environmental almanac, environmental protection agency, fertilizer, fire, fish, fishing, flowers, frogs, geology, great lakes, halloween, hummingbird, hunting, illinois, illinois department of natural resources, illinois environmental protection agency, illinois natural history survey, illinois state geological survey, indiana, insect fear film festival, insects, invasive plants, invasive species, krannert center, landscape, mahomet aquifer, middle fork river, milkweed, monarch butterflies, native plants, nature, oak trees, plants, prairie rivers network, rabbits, renewable energy, sangamon river, science, senegal, shawnee national forest, skunk cabbage, snakes, solar farm, solar installation, solar panels, solar power, spiders, spring, squirrels, students for environmental concerns, summer, sustainability, ticks, trees, university of illinois, urbana park district, urban wildlife, wasps, water quality, west africa, wildlife, winter,