Volo Bog State Natural Area is a nature reserve in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

, United States, preserving Volo Bog. The bog was designated a

National Natural Landmark The National Natural Landmarks (NNL) Program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only national natural areas program that identifies and recognizes the best ...

in 1973 as the only remaining open-water quaking bog in Illinois. The site also contains woodlands, savanna, marshes, prairie restoration areas, shrubland and old fields. Maintained by the

Illinois Department of Natural Resources The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) is the code department of the Illinois state government that operates the state parks and state recreation areas, enforces the fishing and game laws of Illinois, regulates Illinois coal mines, ...

(Illinois DNR), the site is located about a mile west of

U.S. Route 12 U.S. Route 12 (US 12) is an east–west United States Numbered Highways, United States highway, running from Aberdeen, Washington, to Detroit, Detroit, Michigan, for almost . The highway has mostly been superseded by Interstate 90 (I-90) an ...

between the towns of Volo and

Fox Lake, Illinois Fox Lake is a village in Grant and Antioch townships in Lake County, Illinois and Burton Township, McHenry County, Illinois, United States. The population was 10,978 at the 2020 census. It is located approximately 57 miles north of Chicago. H ...

Bog biology

The bog itself is in size. It was originally a steep-sided lake created by the melting of a large chunk of glacial ice at the end of the

Wisconsonian glaciation The Wisconsin Glacial Episode, also called the Wisconsin glaciation, was the most recent glacial period of the North American ice sheet complex. This advance included the Cordilleran Ice Sheet, which nucleated in the northern North American Cor ...

. About 6,000 years before the present, a mat of

sphagnum moss ''Sphagnum'' is a genus of approximately 380 accepted species of mosses, commonly known as sphagnum moss, peat moss, also bog moss and quacker moss (although that term is also sometimes used for peat). Accumulations of ''Sphagnum'' can store w ...

began to grow out into the water, playing a major role in the evolution of this geological feature from a

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

into a bog. As the sphagnum mat aged and thickened, the developing bog (already poorly drained) became acidic. The bog's changing pH levels encouraged the growth of other acid-loving plant species, such as

leatherleaf ''Chamaedaphne calyculata'', known commonly as leatherleaf or cassandra, is a perennial dwarf shrub in the plant family Ericaceae and the only species in the genus ''Chamaedaphne''. It is commonly seen in cold, acidic bogs and forms large, sprea ...

, certain specialized

orchids Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

, and coniferous

tamarack ''Larix laricina'', commonly known as the tamarack, hackmatack, eastern larch, black larch, red larch, or American larch, is a species of larch native to Canada, from eastern Yukon and Inuvik, Northwest Territories east to Newfoundland, and als ...

trees. The development of a tamarack grove on the edge of the bog signaled further change in the wetland. By historic times Volo Bog was deep into the process of

plant succession Ecological succession is the process of change in the species structure of an ecological community over time. The time scale can be decades (for example, after a wildfire) or more or less. Bacteria allows for the cycling of nutrients such as ca ...

. While the center of the bog remained a pool of open water, shallower sections of the sphagnum-moss cushion had begun to provide a substrate for the growth of woody plants, such as tamaracks and

poison sumac ''Toxicodendron vernix'', commonly known as poison sumac, or swamp-sumach, is a woody shrub or small tree growing to 9 metres (30 feet) tall. It was previously known as ''Rhus vernix''. This plant is also known as thunderwood, particul ...

. The edges of the bog were further developing from a bog into a slightly drier

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The p ...

. A state-owned protective zone around the bog displays further stages of plant succession. The entire state park displays a microcosm of plant succession, from bog, through wetland, to

sedge The Cyperaceae are a family of graminoid (grass-like), monocotyledonous flowering plants known as sedges. The family is large, with some 5,500 known species described in about 90 genera, the largest being the "true sedges" genus '' Carex'' ...

grass Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns a ...

meadow A meadow ( ) is an open habitat, or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non- woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as these areas maintain an open character. Meadows may be naturally occurring or arti ...

Bog history

During the 19th century Volo Bog was known to neighbors but not to outsiders. While the damp meadows surrounding the bog provided pasturage for a dairy farm, the bog itself was not economically used. The first field study mentioning Volo Bog was published by W.G. Waterman of

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

in 1921. As the 20th century moved forward, population growth in the

Chicago area The Chicago metropolitan area, also colloquially referred to as Chicagoland, is a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States. Encompassing 10,286 sq mi (28,120 km2), the metropolitan area includes the city of Chicago, its suburbs and hi ...

placed Volo Bog under threat from residential

development Development or developing may refer to: Arts *Development hell, when a project is stuck in development *Filmmaking, development phase, including finance and budgeting *Development (music), the process thematic material is reshaped * Photograph ...

. Cyrus Mark, the first president of the Illinois chapter of

The Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US. Founded in 1951, The Nat ...

, spearheaded the efforts to purchase Volo Bog for preservation. Under Mark's leadership, the Conservancy's Illinois chapter purchased the bog and donated it to the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univer ...

in 1958; this was the first land purchase made by the Illinois Nature Conservancy. The university served as the bog's custodian from 1958 until 1970. Growth in public sensitivity toward

ecological Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...

concerns in the 1960s led to fears that the bog could not survive as an isolated unit. It became clear that the wetlands and meadows surrounding the bog formed an essential element in the survival of the bog itself, as well as serving as a teaching tool for plant succession. In 1970 with widespread local public support, the University of Illinois transferred the bog to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, and the state of Illinois began purchasing parcels of land surrounding the bog to create the current park. Volo Bog was listed as a National Natural Landmark in 1973. One of the wetland farm's original, circa-1900 dairy

barn A barn is an agricultural building usually on farms and used for various purposes. In North America, a barn refers to structures that house livestock, including cattle and horses, as well as equipment and fodder, and often grain.Alle ...

s was renovated and reopened as the bog's visitor center in 1980. Work since 1980 has concentrated on rebuilding and maintaining trails throughout the bog, increasing the accessibility of the bog and visitor center for persons with disabilities, and operating continuing ecology-education programs for adults and schoolchildren.

Recreation

Volo Bog State Natural Area currently offers two major

trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. ...

s. An elevated

boardwalk A boardwalk (alternatively board walk, boarded path, or promenade) is an elevated footpath, walkway, or causeway built with wooden planks that enables pedestrians to cross wet, fragile, or marshy land. They are also in effect a low type of brid ...

leads from the Visitor Center into the bog itself. A ground trail circles through the wetlands and meadows surrounding the bog.

References

External links

* {{authority control Bogs of Illinois State parks of Illinois Protected areas established in 1970 Protected areas of Lake County, Illinois National Natural Landmarks in Illinois Nature reserves in Illinois Nature centers in Illinois Landforms of Lake County, Illinois 1970 establishments in Illinois