Along the Lake Erie shore in Ohio is one of America's top birding spots
One hour away from Adrian is one of America’s best birding spots in May, Magee Marsh Wildlife Area.
Located on West State Route 2 in Oak Harbor, Ohio, this birding hot spot is a stopover point for migrating warblers prior to crossing Lake Erie for their breeding grounds to the north. These tiny, colorful birds travel each spring from Central and South America to breed in North America for the summer.
Using the stars to navigate, warblers fly in large flocks at night. At daylight, they land in areas like Magee Marsh and immediately start feeding on insects, hopping from branch to branch in the trees.
The best place to find warblers this time of year is where the bugs are in parks or urban areas where they can flutter around the undersides of leaves and fly out from branches to catch tiny insects.
Trying to photograph them is a challenge as warblers are very jittery birds and hardly ever stop moving. These photos were taken during a visit in May 11.
If you go
WHAT: Warbler watching
WHEN: Through the end of May
WHERE: Magee Marsh Wildlife Area, Oak Harbor, Ohio
DIRECTIONS: From Adrian, take U.S. 223 to U.S. 23 South. From U.S. 23, drive about 8 miles to exit 232 to I-475 East toward Toledo. On I-475, drive about 6 miles to exit 20B to I-75 North toward Detroit. On I-75, drive about 3 miles to exit 208 toward I-280 South toward Cleveland. On I-280, drive about 5 miles to exit 6 to Woodville Road/State Route 51. Take Route 51 almost a mile and turn left onto State Route 579. Take Route 579 about 11 miles, then turn right onto State Route 2. Drive about 3 miles to Park Road 1, which is the entrance to the wildlife area.
COST: No permits or fees are required to enter the boardwalk.