Stillman Nature Center

About Us:

Stillman Nature Center is a private, not-for-profit center for environmental education located on 80 acres of woods, lake and prairie in South Barrington, Illinois.  A former estate, the land was donated by Alexander Stillman for the purpose of establishing a nature center. 

Stillman Nature Center offers programs for school children during the spring and fall.  Classes at the Center are taught by our naturalist.  Fees vary with the amount of staff time provided by Stillman.  Winter and summer programs are also available but keep in mind that Stillman does not have an indoor visitor center.

Stillman is a place for wildlife:

The outstanding feature of the Stillman Nature Center is the variety of habitats which offer food, cover and nest sites for many animals.

The pond community is home to everything from tiny duckweed, smallest of the flowering plants, to the dinosaur-like snapping turtle that basks on a fallen log.  Under the water's surface are a variety of fish which attract various fish-eating birds including herons, kingfishers, and mergansers.  Stillman also has a marsh that is thick with cattails and a refuge for blue-winged teals, sora rails, and muskrats.

Our woodlands are home to squirrels, raccoons, woodpeckers and a pair of Great Horned Owls.  Some animals like deer and fox can be seen in either the woods or the meadow.  Other animals, such as field sparrows and kingbirds, prefer the grassland habitat.  Parts of the grassland habitat is being converted from old world meadow to a native prairie.  In the prairie, you'll see bluestem, Indian grass, coneflower, and prairie dock.