Wildlife of the Middlefork Savanna

The Finest Black Soil Tall Grass Savanna

The Wildlife Discovery Center wouldn’t be what it is without the backdrop of the nation’s finest example of a black soil, tall grass savanna (according to The Nature Conservancy)…the Middlefork Savanna. Nestled amongst 700 acres are pristine wetlands, rivers, vernal and permanent ponds, sedge meadows, open oak islands, prairie and much more. Due to the rarity of this ecosystem, many threatened and endangered species of plants and animals live here. Some, like the Sandhill Crane, live here during the late spring and through early fall as they raise their young. Bob-O-Link, a rare bird of the prairie, is found in healthy numbers at this location. Many raptors such as red-tailed hawks, sharp shins, coopers, and even harriers find this to be a great place to live. Some of the owls of this site include the Great Horned Owl, Eastern Screech Owl, and even Long Eared Owls. Mink, weasel and other predatory mammals live here year round. Of course, we are very proud of our herpetofauna and Chicago garter snakes, prairie garter snakes, smooth green snakes, red bellied snakes, midland painted turtles, common snapping turtles, American toads, western chorus frogs, green frogs, bullfrogs, northern leopard frogs, tiger salamanders and blue spotted salamanders all are found here. Two rarities, the blanding’s turtle and the eastern massasauga rattlesnakes appear to be extirpated from this site and it is our hope to bring them back through a re-introduction project we have implemented using captive breeding techniques.

The Middlefork Savanna is owned by the Lake County Forest Preserve District. For the past seven
years we have been working in collaboration with the county in completing an extensive herpetofauna survey of this site. We would like to thank them for their cooperation in giving us access to this paradise. Here are some of the amenities you can enjoy at this site:

Meet the Middlefork Savanna’s Reptiles & Amphibians

Other herps of question

We are currently searching for the Blanding’s Turtle (once seen on the Middlefork in 1984) and the Eastern Massasauga.It is our hope that if these animals are extirpated, that we can start considering a reintroduction of these rare herps.