Findlay Reservoir – Hancock County

Lakeview Park – Cuyahoga County

August and September are great months to wander through Lakeview Park in Lorain as part of a Lake Erie hotspot tour. While no one day guarantees a particular mix of species, you never know what might turn up there.

On the beach, you might encounter a variety of shorebirds, including Sanderling, Dunlin, Ruddy Turnstone, sandpipers or plovers. The trees above the beach shelter smaller migratory birds like warblers and vireos, while in and over the lake you can spot ducks, mergansers, and a wide variety of gulls and terns. Peregrine falcons make regular forays into the gull population.

If the birds are scarce you can enjoy the late-blooming roses or dip your toes in the warm late-summer water.

Mercer Wildlife Area – Mercer County 

Mercer Wildlife Area in Mercer County is an excellent location for migrating shorebirds and wading birds in August! Most of the shorebird species that pass through Ohio show up in this area at some point throughout the season. You never know what might drop in there!

Springville Marsh – Hancock County

As one of the largest inland wetlands in Ohio this 200 acre marsh is wonderful in all seasons, but in summer it’s spectacular.

Summer specialties include Flycatchers, Marsh Wrens, Swamp Sparrows, Sora and Virginia Rail. With patience and lots of bug spray one can hear and photograph the Swamp Sparrows within a few feet of the winding boardwalk. For the slower birding hours you may also enjoy a wide variety of native wildflowers drawing countless bees, butterflies, dragonflies, moths, and other important pollinators. 

Although there is a winding boardwalk throughout the wetland it does not have side rails so caution and birding partners are recommended for those on wheels. The paved parking lot provides excellent birding and other nature enjoyment for those not venturing far.

Gilmore Ponds Metropark – Butler County

Gilmore Ponds Metropark (Butler County) in July is full of herons and egrets! The rookeries there allow for large numbers of Great Egrets, Green Herons, Great Blue Herons, Double-crested Cormorants, a few Black-crowned Night-Herons and recently, Yellow-crowned Night-Heron has visited every summer!

Maumee Bay State Park

Who in our Ohio Birding family hasn’t at least heard of Maumee Bay State Park and its very birdy beach and boardwalk? Not too many! Of course I had to go see our famous Nellie and Nish, the nesting Piping Plover pair this past week and will definitely return closer to hatch time end of June. But some other great sightings in June history have been Semi-palmated Plovers,Ruddy Turnstones, American Avocets, and my 2017 photo, the Red Knot. This is definitely a scenic beach visit with rocky stretches and room to search for brief sightings of rare birds. Take a cooler stroll through the marshy boardwalk and the visitors center. Much of the property has access by smooth blacktop and sidewalks for those with special mobility needs.

Edge of Appalachia Preserve – Adams County

The early summers at Edge of Appalachia Preserve in Adams County are some of the most birdy and peaceful mornings I’ve experienced. The hike up the Buzzard’s Roost Rock trail allows for prairie and deep woods that provide homes for Blue Grosbeak, Prairie, Kentucky, Cerulean, Worm-eating, and Hooded Warblers! At night, you may even be fortunate enough to hear a Chuck-wills-widow singing with the chorus of Whip-poor-wills!

Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge – Ottawa County

It’s early migration, and I am dreaming about birds nightly, both real and dream-created birds! Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge in Oak Harbor holds my attention with American White Pelicans, Sandhill Cranes, Trumpeter Swans, and Great Egrets by the dozens but also new Great-horned Owlets and remaining Long-eared Owls. There are accessible sidewalks and boardwalks, soft walking trails, lake inlet paths, and grassy swamp/marsh areas to be explored in the overall 10 miles of hiking. The visitor’s center has facilities, benches, and shelter to view their many bird feeders, Purple Martin gourds, Bluebird and Tree Swallow houses, and sweet-smelling trees flowering for great birding.

Vermilion River—Bacon Woods – Lorain County

Where you’ll find me in April—Looking for warblers in the Vermilion River Reservation, Bacon Woods—part of the Lorain County Metroparks system.

Down in the valley of the Vermilion River a leafy glen invites unusual nesting species for Lorain County and northern Ohio. One of the earliest species to return in April is yellow-throated warblers, which sing loudly from the tops of sycamores lining the river. Later, cerulean warblers, blue-winged warblers, and redstarts set up their nesting territories; while rarer warbler species, like golden-winged, occasionally drop in during migration.

For the best birding, turn north of North Ridge Road into the Bacon Woods section of the Vermilion River Reservation. Drive to the north end of the parking lot, and you may hear yellow-throated or cerulean warblers calling before you even get out of the car.

A wide, flat, packed-gravel path, popular with dog-walkers, heads north through the deep woods, with bluebells lining the path. This .85-mile-loop Bacon Woods Trail is easily traversed, while further paths that wind around a field (.7-mile-loop Bluebird Trail) and deeper into the woods (1.4-mile-loop Coopers Hollow Trail) are sometimes muddy. The trails are consecutive, so to walk the entire Cooper’s Hollow Trail, one also walks the Bacon Woods and Bluebird Trails, for a total round-trip of nearly 3 miles.

An unofficial “fisherman’s trail” hugs the riverbank and can be good for birders in April and May. It’s sometimes tricky to walk because it’s not maintained, and downed trees, mud, and steep portions can be an obstacle to some.

Restroom facilities are available at the parking lot.

East Fork State Park – Floodplains – Clermont County

The Floodplains on the western side of East Fork State Park (Clermont Co) bursts with life in April when large numbers of Grasshopper Sparrows and Prairie Warblers return to breeding grounds! The forested edge to the area can provide great numbers of other migrating songbirds!