[BCNnet] Montrose Beach Dunes update (no sightings)

[birdperson at juno.com]

Bird People:
  
On behalf of the Chicago Park District, I have some wonderful news to report:  Montrose Beach Dunes (the official "state" name) was recently designated an Illinois Natural Areas Inventory (INAI) site by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.  The INAI is a statewide list of high-quality natural areas.**  It is the first time a Chicago Park District parcel was so recognized.
  
The dunes, a 9.25-acre natural area owned by the Chicago Park District in Cook County, are located at the east end of Montrose Beach, Chicago's largest.   The site has been under restoration for the past six years by the Park District and volunteers.  The goal of the restoration is to encourage the native grasses, sedges, rushes, and forbs adapted to beach, dunes, and swales that are increasingly colonizing the area.  Volunteers monitor several state-listed plant species for the Chicago Botanic Garden's Plants of Concern Program, and also monitor resident and migratory birds, including several state-listed species.   
  
The move for INAI designation came about last summer after Debra Nelson, a Heritage Biologist from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), was consulted on ways to control several troublesome invasive species at the site.  Nelson and a colleague soon visited the dunes and were immediately impressed by its unique flora and fauna, including uncommon geological features such as a panne (a wet depression in a dune/swale system).  Nelson noted that pannes are "globally imperiled - - with fewer than 200 acres worldwide."  IDNR subsequently nominated the site for INAI status.  The lengthy application and supporting documentation were approved by the Natural Areas Evaluation Committee in Springfield in early October.   
  
We are all extremely proud of the INAI designation, which opens the way for much greater protection and enhancement of Montrose Beach Dunes.  In the near future, you will notice several changes:  The dune protection fence, which has been in place for five years and sustained much wear and tear, will be dismantled so that sand, snow, and ice can move around freely in the habitat over the winter.  A new fence will be installed in the spring.  The Park District will erect temporary signs demarcating the habitat. You might also notice some thinning of the large Cottonwood trees on the big dune, an ongoing process that reduces the need for volunteers to weed thousands of Cottonwood seedlings each year (the trees produces millions of fluffy seeds that love to sprout in the damp sand).
  
Volunteers are always welcome.  Please contact Leslie Borns, Site Steward, at birdperson at juno.com.  At the listowner's request, please send any questions or comments re. this message to birdperson at juno.com.


Leslie Borns
birdperson at juno.com 
Chicago/Cook
   
**  From the INAI purpose statement:  "It is the public policy of the State of Illinois to secure for the people of present and future generations the benefits of an enduring resource of natural areas, including the elements of natural diversity present in the State, by establishing a statewide inventory of natural areas that will assist in the preservation of Illinois' significant natural features.  The Illinois Natural Areas Inventory is composed of two parts.  The first is a field inventory of significant features that was initiated in 1975.  The second part is a comprehensive list of sites that meet criteria established for natural communities and significant features existing in the State.  The Inventory is an on-going process that is maintained by the Department and continually updated to reflect new data and changing conditions using specific criteria for site eligibility. The objective of the Inventory is to provide current accurate scientific information about the significant features of the State for accounting and tracking purposes, and to be used as a tool to guide State and local governments and non-governmental organizations in the protection and acquisition of Illinois' existing natural areas..."Illinois Natural Areas Inventory Site" (INAI site) means an area of land or water in public or private ownership which, in the opinion of the Department and as approved by the [Natural Areas Evaluation Committee], has natural character of statewide significance in accordance with this Rule, with a natural configuration or sufficient buffer to ensure its potential for protection and proper management as determined for this Rule herein under Section 1080.150(c)and Appendix II."