Maumee Bay State Park (Western Lake Erie Marshes Loop)
The sprawling 1,336-acre park contains a variety of habitats, including swamp forest, open meadows, ponds, beach, and great views of Lake Erie. A two-mile long boardwalk begins at the center and traverses a variety of wetland habitats.
Key Species by Season
Spring
- Osprey
- Broad-Winged Hawk
- American Woodcock
Summer
- Yellow Warbler
- Purple Martin
- Eastern Meadowlark
Fall
- Cape May
- Warbler Forster's
- Tern Lesser Scaup
Winter
- Great Horned Owl
- Snow Bunting
- Herring Gull
At-a-Glance
77 - Maumee Bay State Park
Ohio Department of Natural Resources Ohio State Parks
1400 State Park Road
Oregon, OH 43618
419.836.7758
Public Access
Open all day, year-round
Amenities
Hiking Trails, Restrooms, Visitors Center, Picnic Area, Handicap Accessible Trails, Checklist Available, Camping, Sightings Board, Outdoor Feeders, Wildlife Observation Window
Driving Directions
From Wheeling Street on the east side of Oregon, proceed east on State Route 2 approximately 6 miles to North to North Curtice Road. Turn north for 2.5 miles to the park entrance. Directions from St. Rt. 2 to the park are clearly marked.
What to Look For
The sprawling 1,336-acre park contains a variety of habitats, including swamp forest, open meadows, ponds, beach, and great views of Lake Erie. The Milton B. Trautman Nature Center (named for Ohio's premier ornithologist) hosts an interesting display and news of recent sighting can be gleaned from park naturalists. A two-mile long boardwalk begins at the center and traverses a variety of wetland habitats. This trail can be great during migration and everything from wading birds to raptors to warblers can be listed during a loop of the boardwalk. An artificial sledding hill provides an excellent vista from which to look for migrant raptors, of which many pass over this area both spring and fall. The beach and adjacent grassy lawns have proven to be fairly reliable spots for Buff-breasted Sandpiper, and the nearby lake often attracts lots of gulls and terns. Winter can bring Northern Harriers, Rough-legged Hawks, Short-eared Owls and other raptors, and Long-eared Owls are sometimes found in dense grapevine tangles.
Noteworthy Rarities
One of Ohio's few records of Arctic Tern was found at the park in August 2010 and was widely seen. Western Meadowlarks used to spend summers here annually and may still turn up on occasion. This is a great spot to watch for migrant Golden Eagles.
Natural Features
Serious botanists may be interested in two very rare (in Ohio) sedges that can be seen from the boardwalk: leafy tussock sedge (Carex aquatilis) and northern bearded sedge (Carex pseudocyperus). The federally threatened prairie fringed orchid (Platanthera leucophaea) occurs in the area. Watch for Blanding's turtle in the wetlands, and eastern fox snake along rocky breakwalls buffering the Lake Erie shoreline.
Local Resources
Destination Toledo
Eastern Maumee Bay Chamber of Commerce
Ohio State Parks
Ohio Ornithological Society
Nearby Lake Access Sites
South Shore Veteran's Park. Located just west of Maumee Bay State Park at the junction of Bayshore and Stadium roads in Oregon. A 35-acre park that is primarily geared toward recreational activities, but excellent vistas of Maumee Bay can be had from the park's north side.
About the Western Lake Erie Marshes Loop
The vast marshlands that buffer extensive areas of the Lake Erie shore are a cradle of biodiversity. This globally significant region stretches from Toledo to Sandusky Bay and is the most heavily birded part of Ohio.
On the second Saturday in May, which is International Migratory Bird Day, as many as 10,000 birders from all over the country and beyond will be in the area. While great swaths of the original marshes have been destroyed, huge tracts have been protected as wildlife areas or as part of the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge. The total species list for this loop is 350, and eleven of these species have been found only in this region.
What To Look For
There is never a dull season in the western Lake Erie marshes, but spring brings the most birders. They’re there for good reasons: Magee Marsh and vicinity supports one of the greatest migration spectacles to be found anywhere in North America. Scores of flycatchers, vireos, thrushes, tanagers, and others pass through in May. Stars of the show are the warblers, though. Thirty-seven species occur annually, and many of them can be found in jaw-dropping numbers. Early spring and fall see large movements of nearly all of the regularly occurring waterfowl. Raptor migrations can be sensational, and this is Ohio’s premier region for shorebird migration.
Noteworthy Rarities
There are probably more records of the federally endangered Kirtland’s Warbler from the western Lake Erie marshes region than anywhere else outside of the species’ breeding and wintering grounds. The warbler is but one of scores of rarities that have turned up in this region: 17 species with five or fewer Ohio records have been found, and the only Ohio records for four species come from western Lake Erie. The ODNR Division of Wildlife publishes A Field Checklist to the Birds of Magee Marsh (Publication 342), which details all of the birds found to date in the western Lake Erie marsh region.
Natural Features
The largest remaining marshes in Ohio buffer the western end of Lake Erie. In addition to supporting tremendous numbers and diversity of birds, these wetlands also harbor many other animals and an impressive diversity of plants. Species of plants that are now threatened or endangered, such as wild rice and bullhead-lily, can still be found. Two interesting reptiles that occur are the Blanding’s turtle and Eastern fox snake, both of which are largely confined to the western Lake Erie shoreline in Ohio. Incomprehensible numbers of dragonflies of many species live in the marshes, and occasionally rare migrant dragonflies are found, such as the striped saddlebags.
1400 State Park Road, Oregon, OH 43618
