Nestled on the banks of Quiver Creek, with thousands of acres of river and wetlands expanding beyond it, is an unassuming, cream-colored building.

For 130 years, Illinois Natural History Survey scientists have been dedicated to studying the Illinois River system at the Forbes Biological Station near Havana, Illinois. Founded in 1894 by Stephen A. Forbes, first INHS director and hailed as the “father of modern ecology,” it is North America’s oldest inland field station. In its early years, scientists traveled to Havana, staying in rented lodging or on boats. A permanent building was constructed in 1940, and it has since expanded over the decades to support a community of full-time scientists and students continuing this rich research tradition.

Forbes valued the place-based work that a field station facilitates, believing that direct engagement with the ecosystem provides crucial insights into the interconnectedness of its organisms. This integrated approach remains a cornerstone of ecological research, underscoring the importance of field stations like Forbes Biological Station. Place-based work also allows researchers to be part of the local community, connect with local partners, and understand the needs of the people who live and interact with the natural systems, explained Auriel Fournier, current Forbes Biological Station director and waterfowl ecologist.

“Doing work that’s centered on a place and, in our case, an ecosystem, allows for knowledge and expertise to accumulate over time to understand that place with a lot of depth,” Fournier said.

Forbes Biological Station was founded before today’s levees and lock and dam systems were constructed, giving scientists a rare baseline understanding of the river system they can compare to.

“Steven Forbes started doing science here on the Illinois River and on its floodplains in the late 1800s. That’s continued through today, which allows us to make long-term comparisons and study snapshots to understand how the Illinois River valley has changed over those many, many decades,” Fournier noted. “And there have been some really dramatic changes across that time.”

When Forbes began his work in Havana, it was centered on the river system and its aquatic life, and the field station continued with that focus for several decades. His exhaustive research on the aquatic ecosystems of Illinois, particularly the intricate dynamics of freshwater lakes and rivers, was meticulously documented in reports and publications. Forbes was a visionary who advocated for a holistic approach to studying ecological communities, seeing them as interconnected systems rather than isolated species. This perspective revolutionized scientific understanding of biodiversity, set the stage for modern ecological studies, and continues to influence ecological research today.

Research on waterfowl — now the field station’s primary research focus — began in the 1930s. By the 1980s, the two programs had successfully grown — and outgrown the facility. The Illinois River Biological Station was founded and became the home of the aquatic science program. Also in Havana, the Illinois River Biological Station does impactful research on aquatic systems, fish, mussels, and other organisms, including vital work on invasive species, such as invasive carp.

“Today our work is focused on wetlands and wetland birds, from the mallard, wood duck, and lesser scaup — which are all game species in Illinois, sought after by birders and hunters alike — to wetland birds that are listed as endangered or imperiled at the state and federal level — like king rail and eastern black rail,” Fournier explained. “At our core, we are doing work that informs conservation decisions to make wetlands better for these species and support healthy populations.”

Aerial view of Forbes Biological Station, Quiver Creek, and the Illinois River beyond.

The field station is tucked down a long, wooded drive in a quiet, natural space very close to the habitats the scientists study. It’s located at U.S. Fish and Wildlife’s Chautauqua National Wildlife Refuge and Emiquon Nature Preserve, The Nature Conservancy’s largest preserve in Illinois. The field station houses offices, a lab, a small library, and a bunkhouse for seasonal staff and grad students to live on-site while they work in the field. Fournier said the building has been patchworked together over the years to serve the needs of the scientists, but its location is what makes it special.

“When you look out the north side of our building, you’re looking out over an enormous wetland, which makes it a pretty nice spot to have your office,” she said with a laugh.

Over more than a century, fieldwork in some ways looks very similar to how it always has. Scientists go out on the water in boats to gather data or samples, they trap birds and use leg bands to identify them, and they look at samples in a lab. In other ways, technology has evolved several times over: from tracking birds with antennas and, eventually, GPS; to using cameras to monitor nesting birds and their predators; to computers making data analysis, creating figures, and administrative communication much more efficient.

“The technology we’re using to track bird migration is changing quite a bit, which provides us opportunities to answer questions that 50 years ago just wouldn’t have been feasible,” Fournier said. “It is really exciting.”

The field station has a huge assortment of equipment for trapping birds, depending on the type of bird, and blinds for researchers to stay hidden while they wait for the birds to come in. It is also equipped with several ATVs and different types of boats. Fournier said a larger boat may be needed for research now being done on the Mississippi River, as well.

Forbes scientists release ducks after banding, 2024 [no audio; click to play; avoid if motion-sensitive]

A group of cheerful young scientists walk into the field station, coffee mugs in hand, at a time of day when most alarm clocks are just going off. They had just finished sunrise fieldwork, taking a census of waterfowl broods. It’s early in the season — late May — so just a few fluffy, downy ducks and geese were spotted.

“We tend to be busiest in the spring and the fall because a lot of the work that we do is focused on migratory birds, and that’s when the migration is happening,” Fournier explained. “We also fly the aerial waterfowl survey in the spring and the fall, so there are a lot of layers to that. In the summer we’re in the field, but just a little bit less intensively than in the spring.”

Waterfowl aerial surveys provide abundance estimates for more than 214 miles of the Illinois River and 272 miles of the central Mississippi River. Taken from the air in a small aircraft, this information is valuable for scientists and wildlife managers — who set hunting seasons — and popular for hunters. Frank C. Bellrose, renowned INHS ornithologist and waterfowl biologist, developed the “lake-to-lake” aerial survey method, which revolutionized the estimation of waterfowl populations by providing more accurate and reliable data. Bellrose’s research in Illinois profoundly impacted the understanding of waterfowl populations and their habitats.

Forbes Biological Station plane conducting aerial waterfowl surveys.

Winter is a slower season at the field station, allowing scientists to analyze data gathered from fieldwork done in other seasons. In Bellrose’s time, the aerial surveys flew in the fall and stopped before Christmas, but the birds have been staying in the region longer in recent decades. The aerial surveys now go through mid-January and may be further expanded. Fournier said they are not seeing a shift in the early part of the migration or the peak of migration, but rather the end of the season is longer.

“If we didn’t have 75 years of data,” she said, “it would be really hard to say that with any real authority.”

Research at Forbes Biological Station has informed natural resource management and policy on topics that include waterfowl hunting and much more. This research has also significantly contributed to science, resulting in nearly 100 published peer-reviewed papers in just the last 20 years. With many full-time, dedicated scientists on staff — some with decades of service at their field station — Fournier said there is a wealth of knowledge and collaboration at INHS field stations like Forbes. That wealth of knowledge has a positive impact on the science and the next generation of researchers.

“A lot of the graduate students trained here have gone on to work for state and federal natural resource agencies. Here, they got the skills they needed to go on and manage our natural resources,” she noted. “So we also see that as part of our mission and our impact.”

At the field station, those young researchers are following in the footsteps of influential scientists like Bellrose. In addition to his groundbreaking survey methods, Bellrose’s work advanced knowledge of waterfowl diseases, ecology, behavior, and conservation, and his outreach and advocacy in support of preserving natural habitats raised awareness and garnered support for conservation initiatives. Perhaps his most significant work was on lead shot, which was poisoning waterfowl who accidentally ingested spent lead pellets while foraging. He estimated a loss of 2–3% of North America’s waterfowl populations — millions of birds — each year. But before his research on the topic successfully informed regulatory changes in Illinois and across the country, it revealed a challenging reality.

Jordan and Bellrose band a mallard in the Havana area in 1948.

“The work at the time was not popular, as moving away from lead shot was a big change,” Fournier wrote in a recent Q&A. “But Bellrose was able to pursue that subject because of the support the field station had to investigate what was important, not just what was popular.”

Their work also offers essential, practical feedback for the people managing wetlands the birds rely on. Forbes scientists can see how waterfowl respond to management practices, such as controlled burning and water levels. They partner with their neighbors — U.S. Fish and Wildlife and The Nature Conservancy — so that feedback can be put to use directly in the field station’s backyard.

“The work that has been done at Forbes over the past many decades,” Fournier reflected, “has shaped policy and regulatory decisions, has informed how wetlands are managed across the country, and continues to play a big role in informing decisions about natural resource management in Illinois and beyond.”