Ohio Natural Events in Winter

Morgan Swamp Preserve is a magical place in the winter. Watch for great blue herons along the banks of the Grand River as they find pockets of open, shallow water to search for fish and crayfish.  While you are there, enjoy the evergreen of the hemlock forests, which provides a beautiful, stark contrast to the snowy ground underfoot. 

At 2,000 acres, this preserve holds one of the largest privately protected forested wetlands in Ohio. We're working to protect these wetlands so that the Grand continues to live up to the title of 'State Wild and Scenic River'.  We're also working with partners across the state to look for ways to protect Ohio's Hemlock stands from the invasive Hemlock Wooly Adelgid.

In winter, get out to Great Egret Marsh Preserve and hike the easy 1.2-mile trail in search of tracks from species that utilize the marsh in the winter.  Watch for non-migrating birds who stick it out through the chilly northwest Ohio winters.  Species to keep an eye out for include the American tree sparrow, white-throated sparrow, great black-backed gull and black duck. Also, keep an eye out for osprey who may be utilizing our new osprey tower.

Our work along the coasts of Lake Erie include combating invasive species and restoring these important lands to healthy wetlands that will in turn help protect Lake Erie.

In winter, visitors to Herrick Fen Nature Preserve can observe the many tracks from animals that take advantage of the ease of travel along the boardwalk. Look for signs of mice, squirrel and birds foraging for seeds and any remaining berries from the surrounding native vegetation. Look out into the sedge meadows and search for the huts of muskrat, which rely on cattail and other wetland vegetation for food. 

This preserve holds several state listed endangered and threatened species. The Nature Conservancy continues to protect this habitat from invasive non-native plant species such as buckthorn and reed canary grass. 

Transcend the starkness of winter by bundling up and hiking the trails at Brown’s Lake Bog. An easy .5-mile, round-trip boardwalk trail winds whimsically through a wetland forest and ends atop a floating bog mat. If there’s snow on the ground, you can watch for wildlife tracks from the hearty critters that remain active this time of year. Go on to hike the .5-mile loop trail that leads into well-drained uplands where huge towering oaks dominate.

This 100-acre preserve holds a bog with its floating sphagnum moss mat, a 7-acre kettle hole lake and an outstanding example of a glacially formed hill known as a Kame.  The Nature Conservancy is working to maintain the existing open bog mat and expand the open mat to include currently shrubbed over areas around the bog lake. 

Don’t let a little chill keep you from hiking the 2.5 miles worth of trails at Big Darby Headwaters.  With no bugs to combat, you’ll have a peaceful experience looking for snowy tracks from still-active wildlife.  Or look to the sky to catch a glimpse of resident winter birds such as northern cardinal, black-capped chickadee, white-breasted nuthatch, golden and ruby-crowned kinglets and the curious brown creeper.

Our work at this preserve includes the restoration of a straight, fast flowing ditch back to the softly curving, slow-flowing headwaters stream that it was meant to be.  This has brought back several rare aquatic species.

Winter at the Edge of Appalachia offers the best time to view the topography of southern Ohio.  Look for exposed cliffs on the distant hills, rock outliers at the base of the cliffs, and the deep ravines leading toward Brush Creek.  Watch for the pileated woodpecker, our largest woodpecker species, or try and catch a glimpse of a yellow-breasted sapsucker.  Listen for the calls of yellow-rumped warblers, Carolina chickadees and tufted titmice as they forage through the forest.  Plan on staying the day: Visitors can enjoy over 10 miles of trails!