The objective of the Urban Biotic Assessment Program (UBAP) is to provide the Illinois Tollway with the ecological expertise needed to effectively and efficiently comply with state and federal environmental regulations, while also preserving habitats and species native to the Chicago Metropolitan Area.
INHS began its partnership with the Tollway in 2005, monitoring the endangered Blanding’s Turtle populations affected by the construction of the I355 extension.
This partnership has expanded and enables UBAP researchers to study the habitats and species of the Chicagoland area, and the challenges they face. Learn more about our research.
Download our report of activities from 2015-2020
It's spring so time for amphibians here in Illinois! Hugo and Ethan got started sampling ephemeral pools in the Tollway region. So far they've caught Blue-spotted Salamanders, Eastern Newts, and Chorus Frogs. Share what you've seen so far this spring!![]()
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#amphibians #springtime #fieldwork #herpetology #newts #salamanders #frogs
Matt and Emily, the Western Pond Turtle Team, have made it out to California to begin turtle surveys on military bases in conjunction with DoD Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation and the Smithsonian. They set their first traps yesterday and captured 3 female Western Pond Turtles, California's only native freshwater turtle, and a species of special concern. A good start to their season! Stay tuned for more updates on their findings!![]()
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#westernpondturtles #DoDPARC #conservation #fieldwork #turtles
Time to book it out of this cold weather! @mp4rry16 and @emilyasche26 set off in the big rig on their adventure to capture Western Pond Turtles! Sixteen weeks of fieldwork, well, two of driving, up the California coast. They promised to keep us appraised of their exploits in a weekly blog. Safe travels!![]()
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#livingthedream #turtles #conservation #inhsresearch #inhspacelab #parcherps
We failed to post the follow up for last week's #WhatIsItWednesday ![]()
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The Environmental Education Program is working on new techniques for making realistic models of native species of Illinois for educational purposes. You might have seen our hellbender and mudpuppy models that are used across the nation for conservation education programs. Last week we experimented with some common species and created molds of a Gartersnake, a Dekay's Brownsnake, and a Pimpleback Mussel. ![]()
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After creating the rubber molds, we used a casting resin to make blanks and then Patty has to hand paint the specimens to bring them to life. Stay tuned for future educational models to be available!![]()
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shop.inrs.illinois.edu/inhs-models.html![]()
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#snakes #mussels #environmentaleducation
Malacologist Sarah Douglass presented "Using environmental DNA to detect two rare species: Salamander Mussel Simpsonaias ambigua, and its host, Mudpuppy Necturus maculosus, in Illinois" at the Illinois Chapter of the American Fisheries Society last week.![]()
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The Salamander Mussel Simpsonaias ambigua and Mudpuppy Necturus maculosus are two unusual aquatic organisms that were present across northern and central Illinois. Mudpuppy remains extant but rare, and Salamander Mussel have not been found alive in Illinois for at least 100 years. Following a pilot study to use eDNA to detect presence of Salamander Mussels and Mudpuppies in historical locations in 2019 and 2020. Sarah implemented a longitudinal field study from 2020-2021 to determine if seasonal or site differences occurred for the presence of Salamander Mussel and Mudpuppy eDNA in the Embarras River and Sangamon River in east central Illinois. Using generalized linear models with a binomial logistic regression approach to analyze the detection data, the data provided strong evidence of a seasonal effect; Mudpuppy and possibly Salamander Mussel eDNA was encountered in Illinois during winter and spring more so than in the fall.![]()
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For background on this project, visit our website:![]()
publish.illinois.edu/inhs-ubap/research/edna/salamander-mussel-and-the-mudpuppy/![]()
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#mussels #salamanders #salamandermussel #Edna #conservation