Current headlines

All news

• Large dog running at dog park

  How to have a successful dog park outing

  5/7/2021

  Following the Forest Preserve District's rules and paying attention to advice from dog experts will help you have an enjoyable and safer experience. Know your dog, stay with your dog and pick up after your dog for the safety and benefit of all involved. 

  Read more
• Coyote in field

  Use common sense when encountering coyotes during pupping season

  4/29/2021

  Coyote pupping season is underway, so it's important to take steps to prevent potential conflicts.

  Read more
• Old metal dumped in a forest preserve

  Destruction not allowed: Don’t tamper with nature or use preserves as dumping grounds

  4/26/2021

  The Forest Preserve District's General Use Ordinance No. 124 prohibits the destruction of natural resources and vandalisms in the preserves. The rules are in place to protect Will County's last undisturbed natural areas and to create new habitats for native species and places of respite for visitors.

  Read more
• Boardwalk at Thorn Creek Woods Nature Preserve

  State transfers Thorn Creek Woods acreage to Forest Preserve

  3/8/2021

  The transfer of 466 acres in February gives the Forest Preserve ownership of around 780 acres of the 1,000-acre preserve located in eastern Will County.

  Read more
• A great horned owl takes off from a tree

  Mysterious, night-dwelling owls may just be the coolest birds around

  12/31/2020

  The Forest Preserve's Bob Bryerton tells us why owls are such fascinating creatures and why we just can't learn enough about these stealthy, winged beasts. 

  Read more
• Man holding camera along the DuPage River

  Mike Nagrocki's 'Happy Place': A backyard escape teeming with wildlife

  12/14/2020

  In the five years he has lived across from the Hastert-Bechstein preserve, Nagrocki has been transformed into a wildlife photographer and a bird and wildlife watcher, something he says has helped him to escape everyday life and to appreciate and learn about nature to a higher degree.

  Read more
• Pollinator hotel at Isle a la Cache

  Pollinator hotels abuzz with guests thanks to Eagle Scout candidate

  9/22/2020

  Three hotels built by 14-year-old Luke Lunde of Manhattan and his Scouting crew at Isle a la Cache preserve in Romeoville are attracting solitary bees that nest in cavities and are important pollinators. 

  Read more
• Cyclists on a bike trail at Whalon Lake

  Don't Be a Jerk: Announcing 'on your left' as you pass slower trail traffic is the right thing to do

  8/11/2020

  With more and more bicyclists taking to the trails during the COVID-19 pandemic, it's imperative that everyone learn proper trail etiquette; announce your intent to pass, pass on the left and stay to the right when not passing. 

  Read more
• Dead bird hanging from a branch

  Here We Go Again: Another Bird Killed by Fishing Line in the Preserves

  7/21/2020

  It's becoming an all too common occurrence that shouldn't happen at all in the preserves or elsewhere, seeing dead birds hanging from trees after getting tangled up in fishing line.

  Read more
• Dead robin hanging from fishing line

  Fishing line killed this robin at Monee Reservoir; it shouldn't have

  5/20/2020

  It's a scene that plays out too often in the preserves: animals found dead or injured because they became trapped in fishing line.

  Read more