WHAT IS A PRAIRIE?A prairie is a type of grassland. Its name comesfrom the French word for “meadow.” You mayhave heard of the steppes in Asia, the pampasin South America or the veldt of Africa. Theseplaces are all grasslands, too. Grasslands coverabout one-fourth of the earth’s surface and arethe largest habitat in North America.

Prairies usually form on level or smoothly rollinglandscapes. These areas have a dry or cold sea-son that kills the plants. Most of the prairies inNorth America developed in places where theamount of rainfall each year is low. The Illinoisprairies receive enough rainfall to support largetrees. Frequent fires stop trees from overcrowd-ing prairie plants.

HOW DID THE ILLINOISPRAIRIES FORM?

Most of the land in the northern two-thirds ofIllinois is flat. The land was shaped by glaciersthat moved through. These giant walls of iceformed and spread at a time when the climatein North America was much colder than it isnow. The massive weight and grinding action ofthe glaciers pushed the soil and flattened it.Four major glaciers covered parts of Illinois dur-ing this period that ended about 12,000 yearsago. One of the glaciers, the Illinoian, moved asfar south as Carbondale in southern Illinois. Thispoint was as far south as any glacier in theUnited States reached in this period of glacia-tion.

The weather conditions in Illinois over thousandsof years helped determine that prairies wouldexist in Illinois. The climate of the prairies ischaracterized by hot, dry summers and cold win-ters. When these conditions developed about8,300 years ago, the tallgrass prairie became amajor part of Illinois.

As the climate warmed and the glaciers began tomelt, huge amounts of water flowed from them.These moving waters helped to form today’s rivervalleys, especially of the large rivers in Illinois,like the Mississippi and Illinois. The waters alsocarried much sand and gravel. This load of rockymaterial was dropped to the river bottom whenthe water current slowed. Eventually the glaciersproduced less water, and the rivers becamesmaller. Some of the material carried by therivers was now out of the water. Along the Illi-nois, Mississippi, Green and Kankakee Rivers, sandprairies were formed by this process.

TYPES OF PRAIRIESPrairies are a mixture of grasses and forbs.Forbs are plants with broad leaves, like wild-flowers. Grasses have narrow leaves. Grasses arethe dominant plant type in the prairie. To com-pete with grasses, some forbs send their rootsfurther into the soil than the grasses so that

they may reach water and nutrients that thegrasses cannot. Short forbs bloom early in thespring before the grasses start growing, whiletaller forbs bloom later in the season.

Prairies are classified as wet, mesic or dry. Wetprairies have much water present in the soil.Plants like cord grass, common mountain mintand New England aster grow here. Mesic prairieshave a medium amount of water during the year.Big bluestem, black-eyed Susan, compass-plant,rattlesnake master and yellow coneflower live inmesic prairies. Dry prairies are inhabited by suchplants as little bluestem, leadplant, purpleprairie clover and rough blazing-star.

COUNT THEM!HOW MANY TOADS CAN YOU FIND ONTHIS PAGE?AFTER YOU FIND THEM, COLOR THEM!

DISTRIBUTION OF THE PRAIRIESIn 1820, Illinois had 22 million acres of prairieand 14 million acres of forest. Prairies weremainly in the northern two-thirds of the statewith forest in the southern one-third. All butnine current Illinois counties had large areas ofprairie. In central Illinois, trees could only befound in scattered sites called “prairie groves.”Illinois was the first state that settlers fromthe eastern part of the country travelled to thathad such large areas of grasslands. These set-tlers are responsible for calling Illinois the“prairie state.”

By 1900 most of the Illinois prairie was gone.The development of the self-cleaning steel plowand the richness of the soil led to the conver-sion of most of this land to agricultural prac-tices. By 1978 less than 2,300 acres ofhigh-quality prairie remained. Most of the undis-turbed prairie sites in Illinois today may befound along railroads, in pioneer cemeteries oron land unsuitable for farming.

PRAIRIE PLACE NAMESLiving on the prairie was not easy. The manybiting insects found there made life miserablefor everyone. The grasses grew so high thatpeople could not see over them. People got lostbecause there were few landmarks to guidethem. The weather, ranging from droughts toblizzards, was often unpleasant. Yet, many set-tlers remained.

Some prairie sites were given unusual names bythe people who settled there. “Froggy Prairie” inAdams County came about from a spelling bee.The frogs on the prairie were calling so loudlyduring the spelling bee that the teacher had toshout to be heard. A student said that the placewas “froggy,” and the name stuck.

“Macoupin Prairie” in Greene County comes fromthe Native American word “macoupin.” It wasthe name they gave to an aquatic plant whose

roots were used for food. Today, we call theplant “water lotus.”

“Crow Prairie” in Putnam County was named forthe many crows in the region. “Horse Prairie” inRandolph County was named for wild horses inthe area that had escaped from French settlers.“Buckeye Prairie” of Christian County alertedpeople that the settlers here were from Ohio,the Buckeye State.

CROSSWORD PUZZLEUse the information on this poster to help yousolve the puzzle.

ACROSS3. an extirpated prairie animal4. a plant with broad leaves, like a wildflower6. a type of grassland9. someone who moved to Illinois to settle10. the prairie soil, packed with plant roots

DOWN1. a massive, moving wall of ice2. a butterfly of the prairie5. the dominant plants of the prairie (havenarrow leaves)7. a prairie amphibian, the American8. the type of prairie where leadplant grows

FIREFires occurred often on the prairies. Because theground was flat and unbroken by roads or otherobjects, fires moved quickly and covered hugeareas. Fire is good for the prairie ecosystem.Fire removes the dead stems and leaves ofprairie plants above ground without killing theroots. These plants can grow again after a firefrom either their roots or their seeds. Fire helpsto stop the growth of shrubs and trees in theprairie by killing the living parts that are abovethe soil. These plants do not grow back fromtheir roots as easily as grasses. It is believedthat frequent fire was the reason that Illinoiswas covered with mostly prairie instead of forestwhen the pioneers arrived.

PRAIRIE PLANTSWhen the settlers first arrived in Illinois, manythought that the prairie soil was poor since notrees grew on it. They were wrong. The soil wasand is very rich in nutrients that plants need to

grow. Bacteria and fungi break down dead or-ganisms, returning nutrients to the soil. Grassesgrow so densely on the prairie that the soil ispacked with their roots. This prairie “sod” helpsto conserve both soil and water. It acts like asponge when rain falls. Some settlers even usedsod to build their house.

BBiigg bblluueesstteemm is the state prairie grass. Thisplant may grow to a height of 12 feet!

The ccoommppaassss--ppllaanntt has leaves in a north-southarrangement to allow the most sunlight to beabsorbed. The plant may grow 10 feet tall.

BBllaacckk--eeyyeedd SSuussaann plants are covered with hair-like structures, making them feel rough whentouched.

DDoowwnnyy ggeennttiiaann’’ss flowers are blue-purple. Whendowny gentian is found today in a naturalprairie, it means that the area is undisturbed.

RRaattttlleessnnaakkee mmaasstteerr, as its name implies, wasused to make a drink as an antidote to rat-tlesnake venom. Pioneers believed that if thisplant was present then the eastern massasauga,a prairie rattlesnake, must be near.

PRAIRIE ANIMALSPrairie animals must withstand changing weather,danger from predators, dry conditions and otherhazards, like fire. To meet these challenges,many prairie animals are able to burrow intothe soil, run fast, fly or blend into their sur-roundings. Prairie birds must often nest on theground since there are few trees available.

The nnoorrtthheerrnn hhaarrrriieerr is an endangered Illinoisraptor. This hawk has slim, long wings and along tail. Its white rump patch makes it easy toidentify.

The Illinois state insect, the mmoonnaarrcchh bbuutttteerrffllyy,lives on the prairie. The female lays her eggs onmilkweeds, which the larvae use for food whenthey hatch. The monarch is a migratory butter-fly.

The sseeddggee wwrreenn builds its nest in the prairiegrasses. This tiny bird eats insects and spidersthat it finds in the grasses or on the ground.

The tthhiirrtteeeenn--lliinneedd ggrroouunndd ssqquuiirrrreell eats stems,leaves, seeds and roots of prairie plants and in-sects. This small rodent lives in burrows it digsin the rich soil. The burrows may be as deep as1 1/2 feet.

The AAmmeerriiccaann ttooaadd is a prairie amphibian. It isactive at dusk or at night, seeking insects andworms to eat. Females tend to be larger thanmales.

ENDANGERED AND THREATENEDSPECIES OF THE PRAIRIE

Because much of the prairie has been destroyed,many of the organisms that depend upon it fortheir habitat (food, water, shelter, space) havebeen forced to move to new habitats or havebecome very scarce themselves. Did you knowthat bison and elk once lived in Illinois? Theywere the largest mammals of the Illinoisprairie. Many were killed by pioneers and usedfor food and hides. Others lost their habitat toagriculture and settlement. With the loss ofhabitat, these animals vanished from Illinois,although they still lived in other states. Theywere extirpated.

Today the list of threatened or endangeredprairie species in Illinois includes plants, butter-flies, frogs, snakes, birds and mammals. Withoutthe large continuous grasslands, these organismswill always find survival to be difficult. Prairierestoration efforts help to keep these organismsalive.

CELEBRATE THE PRAIRIES!The third full week in September is celebratedas “Prairie Week.” This annual event occursthanks to a law passed by the state legisla-ture. The purpose of the observance is to de-velop in people an appreciation of prairies.Many activities are conducted during this timein places like parks and nature centers. Demon-strations on how to develop prairies and naturewalks through prairies are some of the eventsin which you might want to participate.

CAN YOU FIND THEM?COUNT THE NUMBER OF EACH TYPE OF PRAIRIESPECIES DRAWN ON THIS PAGE.

MAMMAL BIRD REPTILE AMPHIBIAN INSECT PLANT

MIXED UP WORDSUNSCRAMBLE THESE PRAIRIE TERMS. USE THE INFORMATION ON THE POSTER TO HELP YOU.

saesrgs

orsbf

iols

gib etsmelub

reiiarp

esmic

reif

sionb

yellow

coneflower

sand reed

lark sparrow

compass-plant

prairie dock

New England aster

yellow

coneflow

er

northern harrier

killdeer

sedge wren

white wild indigo

rattlesnake master American toad

ox-eyesunflower

eastern meadowlark

purple prairie clover

black-eyed Susan

meadow anemone

wild bergamot

monarch butterfly

thirteen-lined ground squirrel

elk

spiderwort

sand milkweed

American bison

MAZEHELP THE THIRTEEN-LINED GROUNDSQUIRREL FIND ITS WAY INTO ITSBURROW.

GRASSES1. big bluestem Andropogon gerardii2. little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium3. Indian grass Sorghastrum nutans4. prairie dropseed Sporobolus heterolepis5. cord grass Spartina pectinata

FORBS6. rattlesnake master Eryngium yuccifolium7. purple prairie clover Dalea purpurea8. downy gentian Gentiana puberulenta9. heath aster Aster ericoides10. bush clover Lespedeza capitata11. ox-eye sunflower Heliopsis helianthoides12. prairie sunflower Helianthus pauciflorus13. sawtooth sunflower Helianthus grosseserratus

14. flowering spurge Euphorbia corollata15. rough blazing-star Liatris aspera16. Missouri ironweed Vernonia missurica17. white wild indigo Baptisia alba18. prairie milkweed Asclepias sullivantii19. leadplant Amorpha canescens20. sky-blue aster Aster oolentangiensis21. New England aster Aster novae-angliae22. prairie blazing-star Liatris pycnostachya

23. wild bergamot Monarda fistulosa24. American feverfew Parthenium integrifolium25. common mountain mint Pycnanthemum virginianum26. yellow coneflower Ratibida pinnata27. wild petunia Ruellia humilis28. compass-plant Silphium laciniatum29. prairie dock Silphium terebinthinaceum30. stiff goldenrod Oligoneuron rigidum31. showy goldenrod Solidago speciosa32. Culver’s-root Veronicastrum virginicum33. black-eyed Susan Rudbeckia hirta

34. Illinois tick trefoil Desmodium illinoense35. pasture thistle Cirsium discolor

ANIMALS36. monarch butterfly Danaus plexippus37. American toad Anaxyrus americanus38. thirteen-lined Spermophilus

ground squirrel tridecemlineatus39. sedge wren Cistothorus platensis40. northern harrier Circus cyaneus

Equal opportunity to participate in programs of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) and those funded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and other agencies is available to all individuals regardless of race, sex, national origin, disability, age, religion or other non-merit factors. If you believe you have been discriminated against, contact the funding source’s civil rights office and/or the Equal Employment Opportunity Officer, IDNR, One Natural Resources Way, Springfield, IL 62702-1271; 217/785-0067; TTY 217/782-9175. This informationmay be provided in an alternative format if required. Contact the DNR Clearinghouse at 217/782-7498 for assistance. Printed by the authority of the State of Illinois PRT - 10M - 1/10

Illinois Prairies © 2009, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Springfield, Illinois

Summer Prairie Wildflowers and Grasses of Illinois

Funded cooperatively by the IDNR andthe U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

State of IllinoisIllinois Department of Natural Resources