February 2022
Ed Cope, former Ecologist with the Natural Land Institute, will discuss the flora and fauna of gravel prairies in the Rock River valley, using Bell Bowl Prairie as a specific lens through which to bring the bigger picture of this unique ecosystem into focus. He will review the origin and history of gravel prairies in the area, then discuss the plant and animal species that inhabit them. Particular focus will be given to those species who have disappeared, and those that teeter on the cusp of extirpation. Bell Bowl Prairie is the last local refuge for a large number of species, and its destruction would doubtlessly seal their fate.
Ed is a popular speaker on the flora of Winnebago County. From Roscoe, Illinois, he is currently the Plants Program Manager & Restoration Project Manager at Coos Watershed Association in Coos Bay, Oregon. Ed learned about the local flora of working for the Forest Preserve District and as the restoration ecologist with the Natural Land Institute. He graduated from Montana State University in 2013 with degrees in land rehabilitation and wildlife habitat ecology and management.