Severson Dells Nature Center

Severson Dells Nature Center Our mission is to connect people to nature through education and research. The Nature Center is located on the grounds of the Severson Dells Forest Preserve.
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It's Staff Sunday once again! This week, we're wondering how our staff got interested in pursuing what they're doing. We...
05/31/2026

It's Staff Sunday once again! This week, we're wondering how our staff got interested in pursuing what they're doing. We'd love to know, what made YOU an environmentalist?

As Severson Dells Nature Center reaches our 50th Anniversary, we invite you to celebrate with us! Join us where it all s...
05/30/2026

As Severson Dells Nature Center reaches our 50th Anniversary, we invite you to celebrate with us! Join us where it all started for hands-on nature activities for kids, crafts, guided hikes, displays highlighting our history, cake, an on-site food truck, and more!

No registration necessary. See you there!

A day in the life of a naturalist: professional development edition.Today our education team learned about bird skinning...
05/29/2026

A day in the life of a naturalist: professional development edition.

Today our education team learned about bird skinning! This will enhance our ability to deliver nature education by allowing us to turn window strike casualties into teaching specimens. Special thanks to Juliet for leading the team in this class!

*Please note: All of these birds were window strike casualties. Severson Dells has the appropriate State and Federal permits to handle these birds. Staff was working under a trained professional. Please do not attempt at home.*

In the Northeastern Illinois region, from earthen housing structures, wigwams, modular summer dwellings, and many other ...
05/28/2026

In the Northeastern Illinois region, from earthen housing structures, wigwams, modular summer dwellings, and many other vernacular architectures of regional indigenous nations; to log cabins and sod house constructions of early European settlers; and the Prairie School design movement with Frank Lloyd Wright’s version of organic architecture, people have been designing in and with the native prairie, woodland, and wetland ecosystems of northeastern Illinois for millennia.

Learn more in this week's blog at SeversonDells.org/blog/naturearchitecture

Science Saturdays are back! Join us on June 6th for Sun Spectacular!This FREE, family-friendly open house will feature h...
05/26/2026

Science Saturdays are back! Join us on June 6th for Sun Spectacular!

This FREE, family-friendly open house will feature hands-on activities, crafts, games, and more all relating to nature education and our sun!

Just a reminder, the nature center will be closed during select days:Monday, May 25th: Memorial DayWednesday, May 27th: ...
05/25/2026

Just a reminder, the nature center will be closed during select days:

Monday, May 25th: Memorial Day
Wednesday, May 27th: Major Plumbing Repair
Thursday, May 28th: Major Plumbing Repair

The trails and The Grove will remain open sunrise to sunset!

Staff Sunday is here again! Working at a nature center means that our staff is full of outdoorsy, granola folk. From our...
05/24/2026

Staff Sunday is here again! Working at a nature center means that our staff is full of outdoorsy, granola folk. From our chaco tan-lines to our trunks that are prepped and ready for adventure, we tend to have some telltale signs that we are naturalists.

Tell us you're a naturalist without telling us you're a naturalist in the comments below!

05/23/2026

Did you know that you can support pollinators and contribute to regional biodiversity research on your next walk? BeeSpotter is a community science program at Severson Dells, and we need your help!

To become a BeeSpotter, all you have to do is take a photo/video of bees that you see and then upload them to BeeSpotter-- a web-based portal managed by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. This data is used to gather a baseline on the distribution of pollinators in our area, and is utilized by researchers at the university!

Interested in getting started? You can upload your observations to BeeSpotter at https://beespotter.org/. For questions or help getting started, contact Caedyn [email protected].

For the week of May 24-30, the nature center will be closed during select days:Sunday, May 24thMonday, May 25th: Memoria...
05/22/2026

For the week of May 24-30, the nature center will be closed during select days:

Sunday, May 24th
Monday, May 25th: Memorial Day
Wednesday, May 27th: Major Plumbing Repair
Thursday, May 28th: Major Plumbing Repair

The trails and The Grove will remain open sunrise to sunset!

A few years ago, we made the decision to purchase the former Elliot Golf Course with the goal of restoring the land into...
05/22/2026

A few years ago, we made the decision to purchase the former Elliot Golf Course with the goal of restoring the land into a nature preserve and nature center. This is an expansion of our work to include an urban green space on Rockford's east side. This site will be known as Wild Roots Nature Center at Prairie's Edge.

However, we will never abandon the work we do at Severson Dells. Over the past 50 years, we've brought nature education to thousands (maybe even millions) of visitors, program attendees, and field trip students at Severson Dells Forest Preserve. The land at this is site is owned and managed by the Forest Preserves of Winnebago County. As such, the name of this property will remain unchanged. Separate from the Forest Preserves, our organization will be known as Wild Roots Nature Center at Severson Dells when we’re operating at Severson Dells Forest Preserve.

To learn more about our rebrand process, visit https://www.seversondells.com/wildroots

Address

8786 Montague Road
Rockford, IL
61102

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 4:30pm
Tuesday 8am - 4:30pm
Wednesday 8am - 4:30pm
Thursday 8am - 4:30pm
Friday 8am - 4:30pm
Saturday 8am - 4:30pm

Telephone

+18153352915

Website

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