Mosquito Creek Wildlife Area

This 9,021-acre waterfowl-management area is located west of the Mosquito Creek Reservoir and includes lands that are flat and poorly drained as well as 830 acres of marsh and two ponds.

It provides a regional nesting place for Canada geese, a resting area for migratory waterfowl, quality public hunting opportunities and a place for wildlife enthusiasts to observe a large number of waterfowl and birds associated with wetlands.

Controlled waterfowl and deer hunting are offered by permit. Largemouth bass, northern pike, walleye, bluegills, bullheads, crappies, channel fish and white bass comprise the game fish population in the Mosquito Creek Reservoir.

Birding enthusiasts will find both nesting and migrant birds using the area. Spring migration brings shorebirds and warblers and fall brings the hawks. Red-tailed and marsh hawks are a common sight in the summer. Some rare and unusual birds that have been spotted include the African cattle egret, bald and golden eagles, white pelican, glossy ibis, king rail, goshawk, osprey and long-eared owl.

Canada geese have at times numbered 13,000. Small flocks of migrant blue and snow geese often stop over in the fall. Wood ducks and mallards are the most common, followed by teal, scaup and black ducks. Nearly 300 whistling swans use the area for close to six weeks in the spring and smaller numbers stop for shorter periods in the fall.

The area is also home to one of Ohio’s rarer species of reptiles: the eastern massasauga rattlesnake.