Fig. 5.-- Some of the Scotch and Austrian pines that form a part of the coniferous forest south of Dead River in Illinois 
Beach State Park. Prairie plants dominate the herbaceous layer. 
white pines survive on the westem limits of this 
forest, and a few trees of pitch pine are scattered in 
the sand just south of Dead River. A few trees of 
European larch grow in the interdunal troughs. Many 
prairie herbs still persist under the pines. 
Along the shore of Lake Michigan are a few in- 
teresting associations. Beyond the range of the or- 
dinary storm waves, sea-rocket and cocklebur are the 
dominant species; winged pigweed also grows here, 
and Russian thistle is an invading species but is not 
present every year. Arrowgrasses grow on the mar- 
gins of beach pools. 
Illinois Beach State Park is owned by the State 
of Illinois and is under the control and supervision of 
the State Park Division df the Department of Conser- 
vation. To accommodate the vast throngs of people 
who descend upon this place of beauty, a number of 
bathhouses have been constructed along the lake 
shore for those who wish w swim, and a lodge offers 
rooms and meals to guests. The area south of the 
lodge has been designated as a nature area. If citi- 
zens of Illinois believe that such official designation 
will preserve this area, I must add that there is con- 
Stant pressure to convert this delightful and restful 
part of the park to golf courses, picnic areas, play- 
grounds, and similar enterprises. Citizens of Illinois 
must be constantly on the alert to prevent the de- 
struction of this nature area, which has great scien- 
tific value. 
3. VOLO BOG 
Volo Bog, 1.5 miles north and 1 mile west of 
Volo, Lake County, is situated in the center of sec- 
tion 28, T. 45 N., R. 9 E. The bog is a water-laid 
peat deposit in two basins of a single depression 
that in earlier times formed a sizable lake on a gla- 
cial moraine. The bed is sand. The shallow basin is 
completely filled; the deeper basin has a pool of 
open water, fig. 6. Above the sand is a jelly-like 
ooze, and above the ooze is a deposit of sedge and 
sphagnum peat. Live sphagnum is growing on the 
surface. The depth of peat varies; in the deeper basin 
it is 33 feet deep. Artist (1936) made a study of the 
peat in this bog. 
Surrounding the bog is a zone that contains ca- 
nary reed grass, smartweed, and Canada thistle. A 
few willows, such as black willow and peach-leaved 
willow, grow scattered in the narrow border of the 
