Prospect Heights Natural Resources Commission
All programs take place at the Prospect Heights Public Library's AB meeting room or on Zoom. Talks start promptly at 7:00. Nature Speaks is free admission but registration is necessary.
February 19th, 2026 - 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
On Zoom only, Allison Sacerdote-Velat - “Conserving the Cold and Scaly: Wildlife Conservation Research & Community Science at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum of the Chicago Academy of Sciences”
Join us as we welcome back the regional expert in herpetological conservation, Allison Sacerdote-Velat, the Curator of Biology & Herpetology/VP of Conservation Research at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum of the Chicago Academy of Sciences
In this hour-long talk, you will learn about the wildlife conservation research and community science programs at the Chicago Academy of Sciences, focused on the region’s amphibians, reptiles, and insects and how they use data from our volunteer biodiversity monitoring programs.
Chorus frog at the pond
The smooth greensnake
Dr. Sacerdote-Velat is the Curator of Biology & Herpetology/VP of Conservation Research at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum of the Chicago Academy of Sciences, conducting research focused on conservation and restoration of local amphibians and reptiles including the smooth greensnake, wood frog, and blue-spotted salamanders. Allison also directs the Calling Frog Survey, a community science program that engages and trains over 200 volunteers annually to monitor breeding frog populations across the northeastern Illinois and northwestern Indiana regions of the Chicago Wilderness. Allison is a former Midwest Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation co-chair and served on the MW PARC advisory board from 2010-2018.
Flatwoods spring
Dr. Sacerdote-Velat in the field
Admission is free of charge but you must register for this in-person presentation. This program will be recorded for distribution at a later date. Registration will be open soon.
In the field with greensnakes
Blue-spotted salamander with fingernail clam on toe
Teaching SNAPS program