Stories by Patty Wetli

Lincoln Park Zoo said farewell today to a 300-year-old bur oak, but the tree will live on in multiple ways.

A mystery vandal is once again undoing ecological restoration work at LaBagh Woods.

It's time for the annual City Nature Challenge, a friendly global competition among hundreds of cities, running from Friday through Monday. Here's how to submit nature observations and boost Chicago in the standings.

There’s a love triangle brewing at Montrose Beach, where Imani the piping plover has been joined by a mystery bachelor and … a female.

Chicago’s birders are celebrating the arrival of Imani at Montrose Beach. The piping plover is a 2021 chick of Monty and Rose.

A coalition of attorneys general said the Federal Trade Commission needs to strengthen the process for “ensuring consumers are protected from companies providing overinflated or even false claims about their products’ environmental benefits.”

The employees were charged with accepting bribes in exchange for reducing assessed values on properties owned by Chicago-area fence installation company.

More than 20 years after residents began their fight to save the stair-step limestone wall at Promontory Point on the south lakefront, the Point was declared an official Chicago Landmark during Wednesday’s City Council meeting.

Crews are scheduled to begin removal of the ancient bur oak on May 1. The zoo is planning Arbor Day events on April 28 to give the tree a celebratory farewell.

The CHARM Center, as it’s been dubbed, will open Saturday in South Holland. The free, permanent recycling hub will accept items including electronics, textiles and Styrofoam, many of which are reusable.

Peak bloom is still a couple weeks away, but the buds are beginning to burst forth in Jackson Park’s Cherry Blossom Grove.

A new short documentary, “Watershed Warriors,” focuses on Friends of the Fox River and the progress the organization has made to reclaim the waterway as a natural resource for the people, wildlife and plants that live within its watershed.

According to a new survey, there’s been a shift in the percentage of Americans who believe humans are the primary driver of climate change as opposed to natural changes in the environment.

In true springtime-in-Chicago fashion, last week’s record-setting summer-like temperatures gave way to a return on winter Monday, as people woke up to snow-covered cars and below-freezing wind chills.

After months of great eggs-pectations, the Forest Preserve District of Will County has announced the arrival of five baby bald eagles.

On Friday, Lincoln Park Zoo’s three new male African lion cubs greeted the public in their outdoor habitat for the first time since they were born Jan. 9.

The Commission on Chicago Landmarks approved preliminary landmark status for the Warehouse, a “magical place” where DJ Frankie Knuckles is credited with creating House music.

The Commission on Chicago Landmarks voted unanimously Thursday to grant preliminary landmark status to a pair of early 20th century skyscrapers slated for demolition by the federal government.

Free concerts, theater and dance performances, and workouts are also part of the slate of summer events in Millennium Park announced Thursday by city officials.

Chicagoans will enjoy another summer-like day, with the temperature predicted to hit what would be a record-setting 83 degrees on Thursday, according to the National Weather Service.

A new policy gives Park District commissioners final say over permits for so-called “mega festivals.” It received its first test Wednesday.

Leaders of both museums cited inflation and the higher cost of wages and benefits among the reasons for raising admission fees.

Walmart says it is cutting its losses in the Chicago market, announcing Tuesday it will close four of its eight stores in the city by April 16.

Researchers at Northwestern University found that people who live directly next to Lake Michigan or along one of the major interstate highways running through Chicago are regularly exposed to more air pollution than residents in the rest of the city.

Researchers from Shedd Aquarium and Chicago-based Urban Rivers teamed with counterparts in Boston and Baltimore and confirmed that floating wetlands can improve water quality and provide vital habitat.

The Rosenberg Moon Habitat made by Rockford-based Ingersoll Machine Tools has been crowned the winner of Illinois’ 2023 Makers Madness contest.