Ross: The Dunesland Heritage of Illinois 3 



Dunesland. The other ingredient is sand, which makes up most of the 

 soil along this stretch of land. In Illinois the bearberry, the junipers, 

 and many of the marsh plants can prosper on almost pure sand better 

 than the plants that live in the heavier soils farther from the lake. 

 Thus, the combination of sand and a northerly climate has set the 

 stage for the natural communities growing in the Dunesland. 



Some of the sand ridges support a sparse growth of black oak. 

 These oaks are a reminder that natural communities are always 

 changing. If left to themselves, eventually all the sand ridges of the 

 Dunesland would become black oak forests through a process called 

 ecological succession. This type of change can be understood by 

 considering the vegetation of the entire area in which we live. 



Illinois lies near the western edge of the temperate deciduous 

 forest, sometimes called the beech-maple forest. Eastward this forest 



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Fig. 2. — An expanse of Dunesland prairie donninated by bluestem grasses and supporting o 

 wide variety of other fierbs. The flowers in bloom are on spikes of blazing star, Liofr/s. Rows of 

 black ook con be seen on some of the sand ridges in the background. 



