Isle a la Cache Museum/Preserve

09/18/2026

Creature feature: The common snapping turtle. The common snapping turtle is one of two snapping turtles found in Illinois, but it’s the only one that lives in the northern part of the state. Snapping turtles are named for their snapping bite, but they aren’t generally aggressive, particularly in water. They can be a little feisty on land, however.

A snapping turtle’s shell can be 8 inches to 18 inches long, and they can weigh between 8 pounds and 35 pounds. They spend almost all their time in the water, preferring slow-moving waterways with muddy or sandy bottoms.

Snapping turtles are picky when it comes to food. The eat both plant and animal matter, including aquatic leaves and grasses, algae, fish, frogs, snakes, birds, mammals, insects and even other turtles.

While snapping turtles are not often hunted by other animals, their nests are. Birds, raccoons, skunks and more will raid their nests to eat the eggs. As many as 90% of snapping turtle nests are destroyed by predators every year.

Fun fact: Snapping turtles have existed for about 90 million years — since dinosaurs roamed the earth — and they have changed surprisingly little in that time. They still look and live much the same as they did in the age of dinosaurs.

(Photos courtesy of Joe Viola)

09/14/2026

It’s here! The original artwork for The Stick has arrived! Step into a world of imagination when The Stick opens Sept. 23 at Isle a la Cache Museum. This colorful and captivating exhibition celebrates the simple wonder of a child finding a stick and imagining all the possibilities it can become. The exhibition runs Wednesday, Sept. 23, through Sunday, Dec. 13, and is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays. We can’t wait to share it with you!

9/23/2026-12/13/2026: This traveling exhibition, developed by South Carolina silhouette artist Clay Rice and the South Carolina State Museum, follows a young boy who embarks on an exciting journey after finding a stick.

09/12/2026

Your old bike may be done taking you places, but that doesn't mean it's reached the end of the road. Give it a second life through our Recycle Your Bicycle collection event.

Isle a la Cache Museum has been added as a drop-off site for this program, which runs through Sept. 27. Bikes can be dropped off on the far west side of the museum's parking lot. All collected bikes will be given to Working Bikes, which refurbishes and distributes bicycles locally and globally to people in need.

Get all the details here: https://www.reconnectwithnature.org/headlines/news/recycle-your-bicycle-working-bikes

09/11/2026

Muskrats are technically omnivores, but they mostly eat plants, and their primary food source is cattails.

Get to know these semiaquatic mammals that are common across Illinois.

09/04/2026

When was the last time you sat down to write a letter? Old-fashioned letter writing may have gone out of style in the age of digital communications, but you can try it 1750s style at our next Living History Encounter. Visitors can try writing with feathered quills and walnut ink and even seal their letter with a wax seal while learning about written communications in past centuries.

Living History Encounter: Penning the Past
When: Noon to 3 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 13
Where: Isle a la Cache Museum

9/13/2026: Try your hand at writing 1750-style with feathered quills and walnut ink at our latest Living History Encounter. Discover ink recipes and how to fletch a quill to take home.

09/04/2026

The bald, red heads on these birds serve a purpose; they allow the birds to stick their heads all the way into an animal carcass without pieces of flesh getting stuck on their feathers.

Turkey vultures are raptors just like eagles and hawks, but there are a few things that set them apart.

08/31/2026

Great horned owls are one of the top predators in our area. They mainly eat small mammals like rabbits, squirrels, rats and mice, but they are capable of catching animals even larger than themselves. They are also one of the few animals to hunt skunks.

They are nocturnal, and they prefer woodland habitats, particularly young forests near fields, farmland and other open areas when they can hunt. Not all owls hoot, but great horned owls do. Their familiar hoo-h-hoo-hoo-hoo is the one you probably think of when you think of an owl hooting.

Great horned owls nest in the winter, typically laying their eggs in February or March. The nest in tree cavities and hollows or will take over the nest of hawks, crows and even squirrels since they use them at different times of the year.

Fun fact: Their “horns” aren’t horns at all. Instead, they are tufts of feathers called plumicorns.

(Photos courtesy of Joe Viola)

08/28/2026

We’re excited to put our new paddles to use, thanks to the generous support of The Nature Foundation of Will County! With hands-on STEAM/STEM learning in mind, the paddles will be part of upcoming school field trips at Isle a la Cache Museum.

During these field trips, students will put their muscles — and their singing skills — to the test as they step into the role of French voyageurs and learn about the fur trade. Through this fun, land-based experience, they’ll practice paddling, work together as a crew and discover what it took to travel the waterways during the fur trade era.

(Photo by Sara Russell)

08/24/2026

See it while you still can! “Our Storytellers: Pokagon Potawatomi Black Ash Baskets” is on display at Isle a la Cache through Sunday, Aug. 30. Exhibit hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesdays to Sundays. Developed and curated by Dr. John Low and the Field Museum of Chicago, the exhibit goes beyond the history and utility of black ash baskets, exploring the connections between craft, federal recognition, tribal resilience and the ongoing ecological threats to traditional ways of life for the Pokagon people.

08/20/2026

Looking for a great spot for your next field trip? Isle a la Cache Museum offers hands-on opportunities for kids to learn about local wildlife, habitats and the natural world.

We recently welcomed a KinderCare summer field trip. Program Coordinator Amy McNeil introduced the group to one of our ambassador animals, Hungry, Hungry, Hippo, a Blanding’s turtle.

Experiences like this give young learners a chance to see wildlife up close and discover what makes these animals and their habitats so special.

(Photo by Jen Guest)