January 9, 2015 Buttons During the late 1800s and early 1900s, freshwater mussels were used to make buttons. Harvests took place throughout the Midwest, including Illinois and our own Fox River. Annual harvests totaled tens of millions of pounds per year. By 1908 many mussel numbers were severely depleted, and many species were near extinction.
Buttons, Mussels, Shells
It’s April, and the spring migration is in full swing. Flashy neotropical migrants like scarlet tanagers have begun their epic journeys from South America and should be spotted here within a month. Meanwhile, the magnificent white pelicans have arrived at Dick Young Forest Preserve in Batavia on their annual stopover from points south. And then
Creatures, Freshwater, Mussels, Shell