Barns are practical. They store equipment, keep animals safe, and speak to our agricultural impact. And now Illinois Public Media is bringing you the story of these iconic structures that dot our landscape with the new documentary Barns: An Illinois Story, featuring barns in Champaign, Piatt, McDonough, and Peoria counties.

The ideal landscape for Canada geese includes a pond with an island in the middle, surrounded by a level monoculture of turf grass that slopes gently to the water’s edge. But such a landscape supports very little other native wildlife. Not that the geese would care much.