Book looks at 150 years of nature, change
The modern story of the plants, animals and insects of Illinois is also the story of the Illinois Natural History Survey.
And it is the story of people and their impact on the landscape.
The 151-year-old survey hasn't been around quite as long as Illinois has been a state but certainly long enough to study and document the immense changes in the landscape that have taken place.
Those changes can be found in a new book that will be of interest to anyone who wants to know more about the nature of Illinois. But you might want to act fast as there are 400 copies of "Canaries in the Catbird Seat: The Past, Present and Future of Biological Resources in a Changing Environment."
The book project, a cooperative effort between Illinois Natural History Survey staff (others from outside the organization also contributed), started out as a way to celebrate the survey's 150th anniversary. But publication got pushed back because of the complex nature of coordinating the work of so many different authors and coming up with funding for the book.
"Canaries in the Catbird Seat" was edited by survey staff members Christopher Taylor, John Taft and Charles Warwick.
"We started this in September 2006 when I was on an INHS anniversary committee. This was two years before our anniversary celebration and we came up with the idea for the book then," Taft said.
Added Taylor: "This project grew from our 150th anniversary last year. When we started planning the book we thought it was a good time to synthesize all the information the survey has gathered in recent years and make it useable to the public."
Once Taylor and Taft decided on the framework of the book and rounded up the authors – 65 scientists made contributions – the big challenge was to make the material useful to scientists but also interesting to the general public. The book had to make use of scientific data but it could not be so technical that the average reader would be overwhelmed.
The result is a book that offers a well-documented look at the natural history of Illinois and the immense changes to the landscape over the past 150 years. Scientists will appreciate the comprehensive data and citations in "Canaries in the Catbird Seat," but the scope and tone should also appeal to the nonscientist.
The first few chapters are broad and set the scene for what unfolds: information and background about the Illinois Natural History Survey; an overview of the geologic history of Illinois, as well as looking at the natural features (past and present) of the state; and how scientists gather data and information and put it to work.
Following chapters go into specifics, like changes in forests, prairie, streams, rivers and other wetlands. The book also delves into animal and insect life, from the extirpation of top predators like wolves and cougar to the invasion of non-native species like Asian carp, Amur honeysuckle, multiflora rose, starlings, house sparrows and others.
"Another goal of the book was to bring all this information together in one place," Taft said. A lot of good work has been done over the years by the survey but sitting forlorn on the shelves. We wanted to bring that data up to date.
Illinois has lost so much in terms of prairie, forests and wetlands, that "Canaries in the Catbird Seat" could be a depressing read. But the book also provides glimmers of hope for the future with the habitat restorations taking place at various locations.
We are the future for a lot of places in terms of habitat loss, Taft said. "But we're also first in preservation. There has been a dramatic loss of habitat in Illinois. But at the same time, there is a lot of data on how those communities can be restored. There is a lot of hope, even though serious threats remain."
"Canaries in the Catbird Seat" also gets the word out about the Illinois Natural History Survey and the work it does.
"This agency is old and recognized by our peers. There is a general knowledge of the survey in Champaign-Urbana, but in the rest of Illinois, other than Chicago, we're not that well-known," Taylor said.
Editing, and helping contribute to the book, turned into a learning experience for both Taylor and Taft.
"I learned a lot about other fields. I wasn't that familiar with the vegetative communities, for example," Taylor said. "We wanted to put all that information together and have it written in a tone that would pique readers' interest, and make them want to get involved in conservation in their state."
"We really learned a lot about what other people did and what a good job they do in their respective fields. But the book isn't survey-centric. It's about science in general and the directions we're headed," he said. "We were both really happy with all our authors and the insight and the knowledge they brought to the project."
The $30 book can be purchased through the survey by sending an e-mail to pubs_sales@inhs.illinois.edu or calling 244-2161.
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