Agencies
Services
Land and Water Reserve Area
5
County
McLean
Location
The site is located 10 miles southeast of Bloomington-Normal in Funks Grove Township and Mount Hope Township. It is near other protected natural areas which make up the Funks Grove Natural Area, including Funks Grove Nature Preserve, Thaddeus Stubblefield Grove Nature Preserve, and Stubblefield Woodlots Nature Preserve.
Description
Funks Grove Land and Water Reserve consists of six separate tracts within the Funks Grove Natural Area. This Natural Area consists of 3000 acres of high-quality mesic upland forest, wet-mesic bottomland forest, and mesic bottomland forest identified by the Illinois Natural Areas Inventory (INAI #0721). It was designated as a National Natural Landmark by the United States Park Service for being an example of the virgin forests that once stood in the Midwest. Five of the six parcels of Funks Grove Land and Water Reserve are part of the original prairie grove. The large central tract and most of the two eastern tracts have retained their natural qualities from the original Illinois Natural Areas Inventory, however, other tracts are more degraded by past grazing and logging. The sixth parcel is Murphy’s Grove which consists of floodplain forest associated with Sugar Creek; a good number of black walnuts and large bur oaks are present in this community, as well a large area with early successional woods and Osage orange stands. The rest of Murphy’s Grove is dry-mesic upland forest. The site also protects Species in Greatest Need of Conservation identified by the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan.
Ownership
Sugar Grove Foundation
Natural Division
Grand Prairie Section of the Grand Prairie Natural Division (#4a)
Registered
October 2007
Size
453 acres
Access
The site is open to the public. Contact the Sugar Grove Foundation Office for current hours of operation prior to planning a trip. Access to four of the six tracts is possible from nearby country roads. Parking is possible on the roadside, but space is limited.
Topographic Quad
Stanford, Funks Grove, & Mclean
For Further Information
Visit the Sugar Grove Foundation Website or Contact the INPC
Illinois Nature Preserves Commission
One Natural Resources Way
Springfield, IL 62702
217-785-8686
DNR.INPC@illinois.gov