Conservancy Applauds Congressional Appropriations Bill for Shawnee National Forest

Congressional Action Demonstrates Commitment to Protecting Important Natural Area in Illinois

CHICAGO—One of Illinois’ largest natural areas is expected to get even bigger with the FY ’06 Interior Appropriations Bill recently approved by Congress that designates $250,000 for Shawnee National Forest.

This funding will enable the U.S. Forest Service to acquire land within the purchase boundaries of the forest from willing sellers.

“The Nature Conservancy applauds Senators Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Barack Obama (D-IL) for helping to ensure funding for important conservation work in Southern Illinois,” said Carl Becker, associate state director of conservation programs for The Nature Conservancy in Illinois.

Learn more about the Conservancy's work in Southern Illinois:

The Shawnee National Forest is the largest publicly owned body of land in the state, but less than one-third of the acreage within its authorized boundaries is national forest system land.

Since 2001, The Nature Conservancy has acquired and then conveyed 180 acres of strategically located land in the western part of the forest to the U.S. Forest Service. The Nature Conservancy currently owns 382 acres within the forest.

“Our goal is to create a 100,000-acre block within the forest that is a safe haven for nesting songbirds,” said Mike Baltz, The Nature Conservancy’s Southern Illinois projects director.

The Shawnee National Forest is one of the most biologically diverse areas of Illinois. More than 500 species of wildlife have been recorded within the forest, including the endangered Indiana bat and six other federally listed threatened or endangered species.

Fragmentation of the forest affects neotropical migratory songbirds that breed in the region by allowing more predators into the forest interior. Brown-headed cowbirds also take advantage of forest openings and leave their eggs for songbirds to raise at the expense of their offspring.

The Nature Conservancy is a leading international, nonprofit organization that preserves plants, animals and natural communities representing the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific.