Agencies
Services
Nature Preserve Area
3
County
Cook
Location And Access
Take the US 34 (Ogden Ave.) exit off I-294 (Tri-state Tollway) go 0.75 mile on Ogden Ave. to Wolf Rd. Take Wolf Road north 1 mile to 31st St. in Westchester. The preserve is north of 31st St. and west of Wolf Road.
Description
Wolf Road Prairie is an excellent example of the original tallgrass prairie of Illinois and is the largest prairie of its type remaining in the Chicago area. The prairie is dominated by big bluestem, little bluestem, prairie dropseed and Indian grass. Among its common forbs are smooth blue aster, sky blue aster, black-eyed Susan, nodding onion, prairie phlox, obedient plant and rattlesnake master. Uncommon prairie forbs include Indian paintbrush, bottle gentian, prairie gentian and Indian plantain. A marsh dominated by bulrush and cattail and a small savanna remnant also occur here. The savanna is dominated by bur oak with wild hyacinth, ground nut and meadow rue beneath the trees. Western chorus frog, fox snake, woodchuck, common snipe and swamp sparrow are some of the animals which occur at this preserve.
Ownership
Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Forest Preserve District of Cook County and Save the Prairie Society
Dedicated
September 1988
Size
82 acres with buffer
Topographic Quad
Hinsdale
Topo Map
For Further Information
Illinois Nature Preserves Commission
One Natural Resources Way
Springfield, IL 62702
217-785-8686
or Forest Preserve District of Cook Cty, c/o Cons. Dept., 536 North Harlem Ave., River Forest, IL 60305 (708/771-1330)
