Illinois Natural Areas Inventory Update Overview

Click here to read the January 2007 OutdoorIllinois Editorial about the INAI Update

The Illinois Natural Areas Inventory (INAI) provides a set of information about high quality natural areas, habitats of endangered species, and other significant natural features. Information from the INAI is used to guide and support land acquisition and protection programs by all levels of government as well as by private landowners and conservation organizations.

The original Natural Areas Inventory was carried out in 1975–78, and it has been maintained by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources since then. Although the INAI has been updated to a certain extent, it no longer fully meets the needs of conservation-minded landowners, land managers, and regulatory agencies.

The INAI Update will allow the entire state to be thoroughly and systematically screened in order to find, describe, evaluate, classify, and map natural areas. New technologies and criteria will allow the Update to identify perhaps twice as many natural areas of statewide significance as are currently known. Sites of local significance will also be recognized.

Five regional ecologists will compile information about significant natural features that are already known, and will also systematically screen the region to find new natural areas. Most of these sites will be identified and evaluated by interpreting aerial photography and by low-level aerial reconnaissance, which will be followed by on-site surveys. Additional biologists will conduct surveys of selected groups of plants and animals.

Lincoln Land Community College serves as the lead for the INAI Update with Dr. Brian Anderson being the primary contact. Other members of the INAI Update Team include:

Applied Ecological Services
Steve Apfelbaum
Randy Vogel

Ecological Services
Barbara White
John White

Environmental Planning Solutions, Inc.
Dr. Deanna Glosser

Illinois Natural History Survey
Dr. Michael Jeffords
Dr. Geoff Levin
Randy Nyboer
Diane Szafoni
Dr. Dave Thomas
Tari Tweddale

Advisors
Fran Harty, The Nature Conservancy