ILLINOIS AUDUBON SOCIETY 



Photo by Jesse L. Smith 



LARGE TRACTS IN THE WAUKEGAN FLATS ARK 

 COVERED WITH MATS OF THE TRAILING JUNIPER 



play coreopsis, and 

 turk's - cap and 

 Philadelphia lilies 

 in abundance and 

 prairie orchids, 

 such as calopogon 

 and the rose po- 

 [^onia. The royal 

 fern and other 

 members of the 

 fern family flour- 

 ish here, and 

 here and there are 

 Fields that display 

 fringed gentians and purple gerardias in season. Black oaks grow on 

 the higher ridges and shrubs such as ceanothus, St. John's-wort, poten- 

 tilla, sand cherry, high-bush cranberry, and red osier dogwood are 

 abundant. 



A great variety of bird life resorts to this region but owing to the 

 activities of persons with firearms the actual summer residents prob- 

 ably represent a very small proportion of the bird life that would main- 

 tain itself here if the area were protected. In winter northern visitors 

 are likely to appear here first — the Snow Bunting, the Longspur, the 

 Pine Siskin, the Redpoll, the Pine and the Evening Grosbeak, the 

 Crossbill, etc. The more conspicuous summer residents include the 

 prairie birds such as the Meadowlark and Bobolink, the Red-winged 

 Blackbird, the Marsh Wren, the Yellow Warbler, Maryland Yellow- 

 throat, shore birds such as the Belted Piping Plover and Rails, 

 Grebes, etc. 



It remains to refer briefly to two other areas in Lake County that 

 have been suggested for preservation. The one to include the loop 

 in the Fox River valley suggests the use that might well be made of the 

 river itself. From recreation centers here canoe trips up and down this 

 charming valley would easily be made. The other proposed area, that 



of Grass Lake and its environs, also sug- 

 gests recreational activities on or about the 

 water. This lake is a little more than two 

 miles long and a mile or more wide. From 

 the accompanying map it will be seen that 

 Fox River flows into the lake midway of 

 the western shore and that it emerges 

 through a broad channel at the south end of 

 the lake. The lake is saucer-like in its shal- 

 lowness and the gentle current through it 

 has permitted rich silt to accumulate and 

 furnish anchorage for the roots of plants 

 that flourish in the ooze. Tall grasses flour- 

 ish here, including the wild rice, the most 

 pnoto b> jesse u smith beautiful of all the grasses, and here is a 



BCD, BLOSSOM AND FRUIT ij-i i r j? \ • i * 



of the American lotus splendid colony of the American lotus or 



