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Braidwood Dunes and Savanna Nature Preserve

 

Celebrating 50 Years

As a part of its 50th anniversary celebrations The Nature Conservancy in Illinois is proud to feature places around the state that were protected by the organization and its partners.

Many of these places are now owned and managed other organizations and agencies, each of whom plays an important role in the continued health of Illinois' most important natural areas.

 

 

 

Explore Your State

Illinois Projects

Nachusa Grasslands

Indian Boundary Prairies

Kankakee Sands

Emiquon

Spunky Bottoms

The Mackinaw River

The Illinois Ozarks

The Cache River

Beyond Illinois

The Great Lakes

The Great Rivers Partnership

 

 

 

 

Introduction
During the last ice age, a vast glacial lake inundated an area recognized today as the Braidwood Dunes and Savanna Nature Preserve. Located in southwestern Will County – only 60 miles from the heart of Chicago – Lake Wauponsee eventually receded, leaving behind sandy soils, remnant dunes, and a variety of plants and animals otherwise rare to the surrounding terrain. 

The 259-acre Braidwood Dunes and Savanna Nature Preserve represents a legacy of the area’s glacial past and one of largest and most diverse examples of its habitat type remaining in Illinois. In 1981, the Peabody Coal Company dedicated the land comprising the preserve to the Will County Forest Preserve District. With strip mining still taking place nearby, and new construction booming, protection of this rare and important habitat has become more important than ever.

Natural History
Exploring the Braidwood Dunes and Savanna Nature Preserve’s sandy trails feels like hiking along the beach or in the arid American West. Instead of witnessing wildlife more common to surrounding areas, visitors may witness clusters of prickly-pear cactus or see lizards like the six-lined racerunner. Nearby, a vast savanna dotted with black oak and hickory supports more than thirty species of birds, climbing vines such as grape and woodbine, and vegetation including clammy false foxglove. Low, wet swales support species more common to the eastern coastal plain, including yellow-eyed grass, grass pink and tubercled orchid. Impressive arrays of wildflowers – and visiting butterflies – share their colors.

Today
As owners and managers of the preserve, the Will County Forest Preserve District employs prescribed burns as a primary tool in restoring natural processes and the health of this fire-dependent ecosystem. Every three years, the locally organized Prairie People organizes volunteers to implement these carefully managed fires. Over time, the burns have prevented succession by trees and shrubs, opening up the woodlands to native prairie grasses and allowing the savanna to flourish. Volunteers have also assisted in collecting and planting native seeds. 

During the spring of 2006, the Braidwood Dunes and Savanna Nature Preserve closed indefinitely due to leakage of low-level radioactive material from a nearby nuclear power plant. The preserve will reopen after receiving verification that there is absolutely no health danger affiliated with visiting the site.

Links
The Nature Conservancy
Forest Preserve District of Will County
Illinois Department of Natural Resources
Trails.com
Chicago Wilderness Magazine