Invertebrates of the Indiana Dunes

Thirty-seven species of mammals have been identified at Indiana Dunes National Park. Four other species are thought to inhabit the park, but have not been documented: the northern long-eared myotis (Myotis septentrionalis), the Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis), the hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus), and the southern bog lemming (Synaptomys cooperi) Common mammals seen by visitors and residents include the eastern cottontail, the eastern fox squirrel, the white-footed mouse, the white-tailed deer, and the meadow vole. Extirpated mammals include the common porcupine (Erethizon dorsatum), the gray wolf (Canis lupus), the red wolf (Canis rufus), the black bear (Ursus americanus), the fisher (Pekania pennanti), the cougar (Puma concolor), the Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis), the bobcat (Lynx rufus), the elk (Cervus canadensis), and the American bison (Bison bison). There are two threatened or endangered species in the dunes. The American badger (Taxidea taxus), on the Indiana threatened list is known to inhabit the area. The Indiana bat (Myotis indiana), on the federal endangered list is presumed to inhabit areas of the dunes. Recent records, documented photographically, indicate that North American river otter (Lontra canadensis) and bobcat (Lynx rufus) began returning to the area in 2011 and 2018, respectively.

Indiana Dunes National Park is a United States national park located in northwestern Indiana managed by the National Park Service. It was authorized by Congress in 1966 as the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore and was redesignated as the nation's 61st national park on February 15, 2019. The park runs for about 20 miles (32 km) along the southern shore of Lake Michigan and covers 15,349 acres (6,212 ha). Along the lakefront, the eastern area is roughly the lake shore south to U.S. 12 or U.S. 20 between Michigan City, Indiana, on the east and the Cleveland-Cliffs steel plant on the west. This area's conservation scheme is enhanced by the older Indiana Dunes State Park. To the west of the steel plant lies West Beach and a small extension south of the steel mill continues west along Salt Creek to Indiana 249. The western area is roughly the shoreline south to U.S. 12 between the Burns Ditch west to Broadway in downtown Gary, Indiana. In addition, there are several outlying areas, including Pinhook Bog, in LaPorte County to the east; the Heron Rookery in Porter County, the center of the park; and the Calumet Prairie State Nature Preserve and the Hobart Prairie Grove, both in Lake County, the western end of the park.

The Bailly Nuclear Power Plant was a nuclear power plant project to be located near the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore in Porter County, Indiana, United States. The project was proposed by the Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) in 1967; however, it was cancelled in 1981.It was to have capacity one 644 MW boiling water reactor and it was expected to cost $1.8 billion. Construction started on January 1, 1974.Construction was opposed by the "Concerned Citizens Against the Bailly Nuclear Site", an interest group established in 1972, and the United Steelworkers of America District 31, and the Bailley Alliance. They opposed the project legally and also through the procedures of the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission and other relevant government agencies. The group broke up in 1982 after cancellation of the project.

Dune Acres is a town in Westchester Township, Porter County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 182 at the 2010 census. Dune Acres is located in the duneland of the south shore of Lake Michigan. Many residents of Dune Acres and surrounding communities helped preserve parts of the Indiana Dunes.

The Bailly Generating Station was a 604 megawatt (MW) coal power plant located in Burns Harbor, Indiana, on the shore of Lake Michigan adjacent to the Port of Indiana. The plant, which began operation in 1962 and tripled its capacity in 1968, is owned and operated by the Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO), an electric-utility operating division of the energy holding company NiSource. The plant ceased coal-fired electrical generation on May 31, 2018.

Baillytown is a former community in northern Porter County, Indiana, near the present-day communities of Porter and Burns Harbor. Although the town platted as the Town of Bailly was never built, the Baillytown name was used for many years to refer to the area around the original Joseph Bailly trading post. The name continues today as the name of a subdivision, constructed in the 1990s, in the town of Porter.Baillytown began as a paper community, platted by Joseph Bailly in 1833 near his trading post on the Little Calumet River. Bailly had a group of French Canadians planning on settling in the dunes. When he became ill in 1835, he wrote to these families and recommended that they not journey to the shores of Lake Michigan. The development of a new settlement in the wilderness would be compounded by their lack of English and their lack of experience living among Indians. In the 1830s, the Baillytown name was commonly used for the settlement around the Bailly trading post, which saw frequent visits from Potawatomi trading parties. Baillytown was on a northern branch of the Sauk Trail, and was also accessible from Lake Michigan via Petit Fort. When stagecoach traffic began in 1833, Baillytown was the last stop before Chicago, a journey that could take between six hours and six days depending on conditions. Subsequently, the Long Pole Bridge, a terrifying thousand-foot wooden bridge, was constructed just west of Baillytown to allow travelers to cross the Little Calumet inland.

Cowles Bog is a 4,000-year-old wetland complex in Indiana Dunes National Park, near Chesterton, Indiana. It is named for Henry Chandler Cowles who did his pioneering work in ecology and ecological succession here. His work brought international attention to the area which led to efforts to preserve the Indiana Dunes. It was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1965. It contains bog, fen, marsh, wet meadow, swamp, and pond habitats.

Dune Acres Clubhouse is a historic clubhouse located at Dune Acres, Porter County, Indiana. It was built in 1925, and is a three-story, Bungalow / American Craftsman style building. It has a gable roof and is constructed of reinforced concrete and chinked horizontal logs on the two upper floors.: 5 It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007.

Good Fellow Club Youth Camp is a historic summer camp and a national historic district located at Porter, Porter County, Indiana. The district encompasses nine contributing buildings, seven contributing structures, and one contributing site built by U.S. Steel for its employees' children. The contributing resources include the camp site with roadways and foundations of removed buildings, administration building (lodge, 1941), gate house and flagstone wall (1946), caretaker's house and garage (1941), pool house (1946), steel footbridge, steel swimming pool (1946), riflery (c. 1951), and tennis courts (1946). The buildings reflect the Adirondack rustic and American Craftsman architectural styles. The camp remained in operation until 1976, and is now part of the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore.It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2013.

Dune Acres was a South Shore Line flag stop located at Mineral Springs Road serving Dune Acres in Porter County, Indiana. The station opened prior to 1910 and closed in 1994, as part of an NICTD service revision which also saw the closure of Ambridge, Kemil Road, Willard Avenue, LaLumiere, Rolling Prairie, and New Carlisle. The station did not close on July 5, 1994, like the other stations, instead closing after parking was expanded at the Dune Park station.

Burns Harbor is a town in Westchester Township, Porter County, Indiana, United States on the shores of Lake Michigan in Northwest Indiana. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. The population was 1,156 at the 2010 census. Burns Harbor is located adjacent to the Indiana Dunes, an area that conservationists have fought hard to preserve.

The Joseph Bailly Homestead, also known as Joseph Bailly Homestead and Cemetery, in Porter, Indiana, is a U.S. National Historic Landmark. The Bailly Homestead is preserved by the National Park Service in Indiana Dunes National Park in Porter, Indiana. The Homestead was the home of Joseph Aubert de Gaspé Bailly de Messein (1774-1835), one of the first permanent white settlers in Northwest Indiana. This homestead, begun in 1834, is one of the only surviving elements of the once-significant fur trade in the region. It received its landmark designation in 1962.Bailly brought his family to the southern shore of Lake Michigan in 1822, first living in a log house built soon afterward. The Homestead remained in the family until the death of his granddaughter, Frances Howe, in 1917. The Homestead is sometimes referred to as the "Bailly-Howe" Home. The National Park Service acquired the Homestead on November 26, 1971.